Feeling Something New
by AnotherSideTheOtherStory
Summary: After accidentally drinking a fertility potion Benny finds that not only has his life been turned upside down, but that he's developing new feelings for his life long friend Ethan. Can he deal with both the fallout of the potion and his new found crush? Or will Whitechapel's supernatural forces get the better of him? Bethan. Mpreg Slash -COMPLETE-
1. The Incantation

Feeling Something New

By AnotherSideTheOtherStory

Chapter 1: The Incantation

"I'm so bored," whined Benny as he twirled around in his chair. He stopped when he came face to face with Ethan, and sighed. "Remind me again why we're doing our biology homework instead of playing that new fighting game?"

"Because you're getting a D- in class," said Ethan from his seat on the ground. "And unless you get it up your going to be stuck in summer school. Did you take notes during class today?"

"Not exactly…" said Benny as he held up his own notebook and motioned the small doodle in the corner. "I was designing a superhero costume for myself. I was thinking something like–"

"B, you need to focus, our summer is at stake here!"

Benny flinched when he noticed the disappointed look in his friend's eyes. The pit of his stomach churched as guilt washed over him. It wasn't just his own summer he risked ruining it was Ethan's as well. He closed his eyes and thought about what the teacher had said.

"_Pheromones are a chemical substance released by an animal that serves to influence the physiology or behavior of other members of the same species. They can be used in a variety of ways, such as trailing after food, marking territory, and creating a bond with another living creature."_

"We were studying how certain animals and bugs use chemical reactions to affect the environment they live in."

"Do you remember what they were called?"

"Telephones or phosphorus or something."

"Pheromones."

"Close enough," said Benny as he stood up. "This calls for victory tacos."

"I can't," said Ethan as he clicked away at his phone. "I actually have to leave soon."

"What? Why? We always have tacos on Tuesday, it's tradition!"

"I know, but I have a date with Sarah tonight," whispered Ethan without looking up. "She asked me if I knew about computers and-"

Benny sat down feeling oddly depressed. As happy was he was for Ethan to be chasing after Sarah, he hated the fact she seemed to be slowly taking him away. Sure it was just a Taco Tuesday here and there, but what if E than actually got into a relationship with her? He shuddered at the thought of losing his best friend.

"-so we made plans to go to the movies and then dinner. This is one of the first times she's wanted to hang out with me without some supernatural monster being the reason. I couldn't say no."

"If a hot girl comes knocking then you've got to let her in," said Benny with a sad smile as he lightly spun his chair. "Go do your thing dude, I'll practice my magic or study or something."

"You're not mad at me?" asked Ethan awkwardly as he put his things into his backpack.

"Why would I be mad? You'd do the same thing for me if it… was… Eri...ca…" A sudden thought occurred to him. If Ethan was getting a girlfriend why couldn't he just get one… right? "Can I borrow your notes from class?"

"I don't like that look."

"What look?"

"The one that says you've got an idea," said Ethan as he handed over a purple notebook. "Make sure you study, we have a test coming up next week."

"Uh-huh," said Benny already lost in thought. He followed Ethan to the door, promised him he's study, and then gave him his signature smile before ushering him out. Once the door was securely locked he allowed himself a mischievous grin, there was work to be done.

* * *

Benny sighed contently as he swirled around the contents of the vial. He never thought he'd see the day that not only science, but good old fashion notes would help him create the perfect potion. In his hands he held what he referred to as LPS 2.0, the Love Pheromone Spell, a much stronger and more focused one than the one he created several months ago. He held the container up to the light and smiled, this was definitely one of the perks to being a Spellmaster. He was so consumed in his moment of triumph he almost dropped it when the door burst open.

"Benny if we don't leave now we're going to be late," said Ethan as he walked in. "And there's no way I'm going to be late I've had an almost perfect attendance-" He saw the vial in his friend's hand. "What is that?"

"Behold," said Benny dramatically, as he stood tall and proud. "After combining several spells and potions I present you with LPS 2.0!"

"LPS?"

"Love Pheromone Spell, LPS, just sounds cooler."

"Really?" asked Ethan as he rubbed his face. "Last time you made one of those we almost died. I thought we agreed never to so something like that again."

"We did but with you getting so close with Sarah I figured I needed some help getting close with Erica," said Benny matter of factly. "And all that talk in class about pheromones and stuff got me thinking, why did the potion backfire, why did all those girls try and kill us? And guess what I found out, it was a love potion!"

Ethan's bewildered and confused expression said it all.

"Don't you get it E? Love potions deal with emotions, like jealousy! This time I mixed in a pheromone spell, so it's all science! Jealousy and all those other crazy emotions won't matter! It'll just be instinct!"

"Let me get this straight, you spent all of last night studying what we learned in class and then applying it to this spell?"

"Yup."

"I'm impressed," said Ethan as he crossed his arms. "But there's no way I'm going to be a part of this, I don't need my powers to tell me this has bad idea written all over it. Besides I don't want to ruin my chances with Sarah if it goes wrong."

Benny patted him on the head. "I thought you might say something like that. So I only made one dose, no reason to expose you to the dangers of the female population, especially if this thing bombs. Plus I figured if anything went wrong you could bail me out."

"That's what best friends do for each other."

Benny drained the vial in one go and stood up. He looked at Ethan and raised his hands high. "Well? Did anything happen to me?"

"You look the same to me," said Ethan his eyebrows raised. "Did it work?"

"I'm not sure," said Benny as he picked up his spell book and flipped through the pages. "I think I have to talk with Erica or something…. Oh and before I forget!" He pulled a purple notebook from his satchel and handed it to him. "Thanks for letting me borrow your science notes last night, I never would've been able to create LPS 2.0 without them."

"I never would've let you borrow them if I had known they'd be used for evil," said Ethan sarcastically as he took the purple spiral book from his friend. He stuffed it into his own backpack. He motioned towards the clock. "Let's go I don't want to be late."

"If this works, then I could have a girlfriend by the end of the day!" yelled Benny as he brushed past Ethan. "Come on, I don't want to miss a single moment of Erica lovin!"

Ethan rolled his eyes and followed. What was the worst thing that could happen? Well a lot, but he preferred not to dwell on that possibility.

* * *

"What's up babe?" asked Benny as he leaned against the locker next to Erica's.

Ethan hung back a few steps trying not to watch the train wreak before him. No matter how hard his friend would try, and magic or no magic, Erica would always find one way or another to be annoyed.

"What do you want?" asked Erica without looking at him. "Can't you see I'm busy?"

"You don't find anything about me attractive? Like maybe my perfect bouncy brown hair, or my easy to get lost in emerald green eyes?"

"Uh no," responded Erica as she closed the locker and stared at him. "The only thing about you that interests me in the slightest would be your blood, and it's not even that great.

"Darn," said Benny as he produced his spell book from his satchel. He leafed through the pages without looking up. "I thought it would work for sure."

"What was?" Then it dawned on her. She glared at him. "Where you trying to use one of your spells on me? You were weren't you?"

"N-no why would I do that?"

Ethan sensing things were about to get very bad, took a step forward to interfere. "We had a bet, he was going to flirt with you and see if he could get you to admit that some part of him was attractive. Obviously it didn't work."

Ethan reached out for his friend's arm, and at the same time Erica grabbed the other one.

"What were you trying to do?" asked Erica as she gave Benny a tug in her direction. "Tell me."

"I already told you," said Ethan as he pulled on his best friend's arm. "It was a bet."

Both Ethan and Erica began to tug harder, oblivious to the pain Benny was in.

"Tell me!"

"I already did!"

"Let him go!"

"No you let him go!"

"Spellmaster in pain here!"

"Whoa guys knock it off!" said Sarah as she ran towards them with Rory in tow. Both Ethan and Erica let go of Benny's arms. "What are you doing? Are you trying to get detention?"

"Whatever it was it looked fun," said Rory as he jumped up and down enthusiastically. "I want to try, I'm next I called it!"

"Benny was trying to use one of his spells on me," said Erica with her arms crossed. "I thought we agreed never to do that again."

"Was not," said Benny from his hiding spot behind Ethan. "It was a bet to see if she could admit she liked me."

Sarah looked at Erica and then at Ethan and Benny. "Erica apologize for almost ripping Benny in two. And Benny apologize for whatever the heck you were doing."

There was a moment of intense awkwardly silence before either of them said anything.

"Sorry for trying to use magic on you," mumbled Benny as he rubbed his wrist.

"Sorry for almost ripping off your arm," said Erica before turning away and disappearing down the hall. Sarah darted after her, and Ethan followed after Sarah.

"Well," said Rory as he put his arm around Benny's shoulder. "Looks like it's just the two of us."

"Great," sighed Benny watching his best friend disappear around the corner.

* * *

"I can't believe LPS 2.0 didn't work," pouted Benny from his bed as he stared up at the ceiling. "I mean I put more research into that than anything else I've ever done before."

"I still can't believe Erica didn't try to kill you," responded Ethan as he sat at his friend's desk. "Of all the people you could have a crush on you have to have one on the girl with the personality and dental work of a shark."

"I know isn't she awesome?"

Ethan rolled his eyes and noticed a small sketch pad resting in the corner. "I didn't know you like to draw."

"It's not really drawing I just sketch some of the things I see. It helps me when I can't figure out a spell or just have something on my mind I can't stop thinking about."

Ethan opened the small book, the first picture was of Erica bearing her fangs, the next one of Mr. G at the board, and the one after that was Rory chasing after a cat.

"These are really good," said Ethan as he continued to flip through the book. "Maybe you should be an artist."

"Thanks," said Benny without really listening. "Why didn't the spell work? I planned everything out perfectly!"

Then Ethan came across the last picture, which unlike the others had been finished. It was a silhouette of the Seer as he stood before the full moon staring at it. He felt himself go red, this sketch was from just a few days ago when he and Benny had hiked to the top of Whitechapel to watch the full moon rise.

"Which means," thought Ethan. "That when I was watching the moonrise, Benny had been watching me..." _'It helps me when I can't figure out a spell or just have something on my mind that I can't stop thinking about.' _He felt himself go even redder.

"Was there something wrong with the amount of ingredients I put into it or am I just that bad of a Spell Master?"

Before Ethan could respond his phone went off. "I have to get going, I forgot Sarah's supposed to be coming over for dinner tonight."

"Have fun," said Benny as he continued to think about the spell. "Oh and before I forget you spelled pheromone wrong in your notebook."

Ethan rolled his eyes and waved goodbye to his friend. On the way out opened his notebook, in the corner of the page was a small note from Benny.

_Pretty sure ferimone is spelled with an 'f'- B_

Ethan looked over his shoulder at the Weir household, if Benny thought pheromone was spelt with an F, then what spell had he been using? Maybe it was labeled in a different language or as an incantation, after all half the words seemed gibberish to him. He shook the thoughts away and prepared himself for his date with Sarah.

* * *

Benny let out a sigh as he flipped to the bookmarked page. After a quick glance over the instructions he let out a laugh. How could he have forgotten to mutter then incantation?

"Accipio graviditas." A tingling sensation rushed through Benny's body. He let out a yawn and laid back on the bed feeling strangely exhausted. A few moments later Benny Weir was sound asleep and unaware of the strange sensation that had come to rest in his stomach.


	2. Benny's Bad Day

A/N: Here's chapter two! Don't worry the Ethan/Sarah will work it's way out of the story (after all this is about best friends falling in love), and thanks for all the reviews! If you have any questions leave them in the reviews and I'll try to answer them in the next update!

* * *

Feeling Something New

By AnotherSideTheOtherStory

Chapter 2: Benny's Bad Day

_If there was one thing six-year-old Benny loved it was definitely the summer sunsets, though not being in school was a close second. The warm breeze, the purple sky and the sounds of crickets chirping alway brought a smile to his face. He ran through the open field chasing after bugs and stole a quick glance over his shoulder. Ethan stood next to his family looking wearily between his baby sister and the field._

"_Come on E," yelled Benny as he ran over to his friend. "Your gonna miss one of the coolest things ever!"_

_Ethan looked hesitantly at Jane then back over at Benny. Samantha smiled. "Go on, your sister will be fine."_

"_This way," said Benny as he grabbed him by the hand and pulled him into the field. "Trust me, this is going to be one of the coolest things you'll ever see."_

_He took a seat and made Ethan do the same. They sat there in silence and watched as the sky turned dark. All around little glowing lights began to appear. They were in the grass, on the ground, even flying through the air. _

"_Whoa," whispered Ethan with a smile as he tried to catch one. "What are they?"_

"_Fireflies," said Benny as he jumped to his feet. The bugs took to the air surrounding them in a swirl of bright yellow light. "Come on I'll show you how to catch one!"_

_He ran forward and stopped when he noticed Ethan wasn't following. Instead the now older boy was talking with Sarah, she took his hand in hers and together they walked in the opposite direction. One by one the lights went out until Benny found himself alone in the darkness._

* * *

Benny walked into the kitchen and felt his stomach churn as a horrible smell assaulted his senses. He covered his nose to block out the horrible stench and took a seat at the table, whatever his Grandma was cooking smelled worse than Rory's deep fried cheese and chocolate covered rats.

"Grandma can I ask you something?" Asked Benny as he tried to distract himself from the smell.

"What is it dear?" asked Evelyn as she continued to stir whatever was in the pot. "You know you can ask me anything."

"Did you ever have a best friend growing up that you stopped being friends with?"

Evelyn stopped and turned to face him. "Why? Did you and Ethan get into a fight or something?"

"No, he's just hanging out with Sarah all the time. I feel like he cares more about her then he does about me now. Like last night he skipped Taco Tuesday for the first time ever."

"I was going to ask you about that last night but you were already asleep," She noticed the way he flinched. "Just because you and him aren't hanging out as much as you used to doesn't mean you're not friends. It's just a part of growing up."

"I guess, I just figured things would never change and we'd be like that forever."

"Have you talked to him about it?"

"No, I don't want the time we do hang out to be depressing and emotions."

"The truth about most friendships is they don't end with a disagreement or in some big fight. In fact most of them end without you even realizing it. One day you wake up and you'll realize you don't know them anymore, you'll just be strangers with a bunch of common memories."

"I don't think that could happen with E, I mean we fight monsters, and we've been friends for ever."

"Then what are you worried about?" Asked Evelyn as she patted Benny on the head. "Are you feeling ok? You look a little pale."

"I'm fine, but what are you making? It smells like my gym shorts at the end of the week."

"It's just my regular homemade oatmeal, you've never complained about it before, you said it was your favaorite."

"It's never smelled that bad before," said Benny as he got up. "I'm going to school early, and Grandma it smells like something died in that bowl."

He grabbed his thermos and darted out of the kitchen without another word. Evelyn tested the oatmeal and shrugged, it tasted the same as always.

* * *

"Is that coffee?"

"Yup."

"You only drink coffee when you had a bad dream," said Ethan as he joined Benny on the sidewalk. "So what did you dream about?"

"I don't feel like talking about it," said Benny as he took a sip from his thermos. "How did things go with Sarah last night?"

Ethan turned red. "I don't want to talk about it."

"Well I figured out what was wrong with the pheromone potion."

"Really what was it?"

"I-uh-I forgot to say the incantation. Guess next time I should read _all_ the instructions."

"You didn't read the instructions?"

"I skimmed them, sorta…" mumbled Benny with a weak laugh. Then he noticed the way Ethan was squinting at him. "S-Stop that."

"Stop what?" asked Ethan without breaking eye contact.

"Shooting imaginary laser beams at me, it's freaking me out."

"Fine, but next time read the instructions. What if something bad happened like you summoned a demon, or accidentally created a baby or turned yourself into a rat?"

"Create a baby… they do say boys are made from frogs, snails and puppy dog tails…."

"No Benny."

"E, I was joking. Lighten up a little bit, did things really go that bad last night?"

Ethan changed the subject. "Do you know if the spell worked?"

"We'll find out today at school," said Benny, as he swirled the contents of the thermos around. "I passed out after saying it last night."

"You passed out?" asked Ethan suddenly worried. He stopped and grabbed him by the arm. "Is that supposed to happen? Are you ok? You don't look like anything's missing."

"E I'm fine. I didn't mean like faint, I meant like fell asleep."

"Oh," mumbled Ethan, as he turned red again. "Y-you should really be more specific about these things."

"You can let go now," said Benny as he motioned to his arm. "You know you got a pretty strong grip dude."

"Huh? Oh, sorry."

"According to Grandma the stronger the spell the more energy it takes, so guess it makes sense that I knocked out last night. There were also a lot of other side effects but they weren't anything special. Are we still going to see World War V this weekend?"

"Yeah why wouldn't we?"

"Well you've been spending a lot of time with Sarah lately," whispered Benny as he looked up at the sky. "I just figured you'd made plans with her."

"Ok I'll admit I've been brushing you off to spend more time with her, but we've been waiting to see this movie for the last three months. There's no way I'd miss seeing it with you."

Benny smiled feeling a strange sense of relief wash over him, at least Ethan could admit he'd been sort of different lately. Maybe things weren't changing as much as he thought they were.

* * *

Ethan watched as Benny walked into Home Ec with a dark purple bruise on his left cheek. He slowly donned his pink apron and without making eye contact said:

"Well… the spell didn't work."

"And your cheek?"

"Erica hits hard when you annoy her, especially if you try and kiss her."

"Why would you do that B?"

"I thought she'd be in love with me," grumbled Benny sadly. "How was I supposed to know the spell didn't work?"

"Maybe she isn't the one then," said Ethan as he tried to cheer up his friend. "Maybe it's like a true love spell or something and it will only work when you find the person you really love."

"This isn't a movie E, there's no such thing as a true love spell. Anyway I just want to get my mind off of it, what are we cooking today?"

"I don't-"

"We'll be making a simple chicken noodle soup," said Mrs. Oppenheimer as she strolled past their station. She glared at Benny. "Though simple to some people means impossible to others."

For the next thirty minutes they followed her instructions, and together the two of them managed to cut, cook, and season the chicken. Ethan smiled, and for the first time ever thought they might pass their cooking assignment, at least until they started cutting the vegetables. That's when he noticed Benny had gone pale.

"Are you ok?" asked Ethan as he began to chop away at the green onions. "You look… out of it."

"I should not have had that coffee," said Benny as took in a deep breath. "I feel like I'm going to puke. Mrs. Oppenheimer I don't feel good can I go to the bathroom?"

"No," responded the teacher without even looking in their direction. "The last time I let you go you didn't come back until the next day. Once you finish your assignment then you can go."

Ethan noticed the distressed look on his friends face, and the way he went slightly green. He quickly tossed the onions into the soup and raised his hand. "Mrs. Oppenheimer we're done!"

She walked over to their station, pulled a clean spoon from the drawer, then glared at each of them before dipping it into the bowl. She swirled around the contents muttering to herself, as she did Benny covered his mouth and suddenly leaned forward. He vomited right into the soup causing several students to scream and run for the doors.

"That's it, I've had it up to here with these stupid disgusting teenagers," screamed Mrs. Oppenheimer as she ripped off her apron and tossed it on the ground. She stormed out of the class with one final declaration of: "I quit!"

"Sorry," managed Benny weakly before leaning forward and vomiting again. Ethan said nothing and rubbed his friends back until he was done. Silently he thought to himself:

"_Just another day in Home Ec."_

* * *

"Wait let me get this straight," said Erica with a huge smile on her face. "You threw up in your soup when she was getting ready to taste it? And all the other students ran out?"

"Yeah," said Ethan and Benny in unison, the latter with a huge blush across his face.

"That's hilarious!" She began to laugh. "That totally makes up for what happened earlier!"

"That's disgusting," said Sarah as she pushed her lunch tray away. "Did you guys at least get credit for the assignment?"

"She quit," said Benny as he covered his face feeling unnaturally embarrassed. "I can't believe I did that, I'm going to be remembered as Barfing Benny Weir!"

"Who cares?" Said Rory with a smile as he leaned forward. "You puked in your own soup that's so awesome!"

"You did also get the meanest teacher here to leave," said Ethan as he patted him on the back. "Not many people can say that."

"If anything you've done this school a service," mumbled Sarah. "She once gave me a D- because my cake was dark chocolate and not milk chocolate. And I make pretty bomb cakes, so yeah…."

"I've tried them and they're ok," said Erica as he picked through Rory's lunch.

"I guess it wasn't that bad," mumbled Benny with a smile. "Now that I think about it, it was pretty funny watch Mrs. O freak out."

"I wish I could've see that!" whined Rory. "All the cool stuff happens to you guys."

"Why do you guys buy lunch?" asked Erica as she picked up a cookie from Rory's tray. "And when did the school start giving free cookies with each meal?"

They glanced around the cafeteria and noticed that everyone with a tray was also eating a cookie.

"No idea," said Ethan as he took a bite of his sandwich. "Benny and I haven't eaten a school lunch since Stephanie became the lunch lady."

They all turned to look at the old woman and were rewarded with a scowl. Benny took the wraped sweet from Erica and sniffed it.

"I'm guessing they were made fresh this morning, it actually doesn't smell that bad." He licked his lips. "I wonder-"

"I wouldn't trust anything she's made," said Sarah quickly. "Remember she used to spit in the food?"

"Plus it's Stephanie," said Ethan as he took it from Benny. "Anything she makes can't be good."

* * *

"It just doesn't make sense," said Benny as he jumped onto Ethan's bed. "I did everything the spell book said and it didn't even work."

"Maybe you messed something up when you were creating the potion?" asked Ethan as sat on the bed next to Benny. "You did say earlier you didn't really read the instructions."

"Yeah but if it didn't work then why would I be experiencing the side effects? It says right here if the spell worked then I should be tired, nauseous, which as we both know already happened, and that I might get dizzy and stomach cramps."

"Benny what kind of spell gives you side effects like that?"

"The pheromone one apparently!"

Ethan felt something go off in his brain. It wasn't possible…. Was it? "Ok Benny I need you to focus, in my notes you wrote you spell pheromone with an 'f', right?"

"Uh yeah that because it is E, weren't you paying attention?"

"Pheromone is spelled with a 'ph'." Benny gave him a strange look and Ethan felt his heart race. "It's silent like in phone, phobia, photo!"

"Oh…" said Benny as he looked down at his spell book confused. "That doesn't make any sense… Then what potion was I working on?"

"Please let me be wrong," said Ethan as he took the spell book from his friend. "Please let me be wrong…. Oh no."

"What? What is it?" Asked Benny suddenly afraid. "How bad did I screw up?"

"Benny this isn't a pheromone spell, it's fertility potion. This is something people use to get pregnant."

Benny waited for Ethan to laugh, or say he was joking, anything really. When he didn't he felt himself suddenly weaken. It wasn't possible…. Magic didn't work that way… right?

"Benny? Are you ok?"

"I'm having a really bad day E."


	3. Bump in the Road

A/N: Sorry for the delayed update. This chapter was supposed to go up on Thursday but my co-author and I weren't happy with the original draft. So we fixed it, and made it extra long. Hope you enjoy! And again thank you so much for the reviews!

* * *

Feeling Something New

By AnotherSideTheOtherStory

Chapter 3: Bump in the Road

Pregnant? Pregnant…. Pregnant! Benny's eyes widened as the realization of what Ethan said finally dawned on him. All at once his mind became a hurricane of thoughts, questions and concerns. First and foremost was the impossibility of the situation at hand.

"I'm a guy, guys can't have babies."

"It doesn't matter," answered Ethan as he pointed to a passage in the spell book. Benny scooted closer to get a better view. "If I'm reading this right then the potion was designed to increase the fertility of the person who drinks it regardless of gender."

Benny took the book from his friend's hands and began to read aloud: "Whoever ingests the fertility potion must come into physical contact with the person they wish to conceive with. If no physical contact is made within the hour then one can experience side effects relating to pregnancy while the potion works it way out of the system."

"Then there's a chance it didn't work?"

"A small one but-"

"Did anyone touch after you took the potion?"

"You did," whispered Benny afraid of his friend's reaction. "Remember in the hallway when you and Erica grabbed my arms?" Ethan paled and Benny quickly added: "B-but that was at least two hours after I took it."

"What about the symptoms?"

"You read the passage, the potion's probably just working its way out of my body."

"Does it say anything about a detection spell? Or any other way to see if it worked?"

"Why are you asking me?"

"Don't you know what spells are in your own spell book?" asked Ethan in disbelief.

"N-no," said Benny with a nervous laugh. "That's like telling me to remember every single word in the dictionary!"

"Ok," said Ethan as he stood up and thought about it for a moment. "You need to take a pregnancy test."

"We can't go the store and pick up a pregnancy test, this is Whitechapel! Which means someone will see us, and then they'll talk and the next thing you know the entire city will know that Benny might be having baby!"

"What about those two things your Grandma uses to sense and find supernatural stuff? You know those wooden sticks that glow."

"The dowsing rods?"

"If the spell worked then the baby should be considered supernatural right? So we should be able to point them at your stomach and-"

Benny grabbed him by the arm and pulled him towards the door. "What are you waiting for? Come on!"

* * *

Ten minutes later the duo were searching through cabinets, pulling out drawers and turning the Weir household upside down. Ethan watched as his friend's normally calm demeanor slowly became more and more agitated. It was definitely something he wasn't used to.

"It's got to be in here somewhere," cried Benny as he pulled out one of the desk drawers and tossed it contents across the floor. "Where are they?"

"Relax," said Ethan as placed a hand on his shoulder. "You don't need to get so worked up, it's only going to make things worse."

"How can you tell me to relax?" Asked Benny as he threw his hands up in the air in frustration. "I might have seriously screwed up my life and-"

"That's why you need to stop and take a deep breath," said Ethan sternly. "Getting worked up isn't going to help us find the dowsing rods, if anything it's gonna make it harder."

Benny noticed the look of concern in Ethan's eyes and forced himself to stop and inhale deeply. "Your right I need to calm down and focus."

"Now think, where was the last place you saw them?"

"I don't know…. I used them to find my spell book a few days ago so… maybe they're still in my room."

Ethan nodded and together the two of them made a mad dash for Benny's room. A few minutes and a one huge disaster later Ethan held the wooden rods victoriously in his hands. He took them by the handles and pointed them at his friend's magically charmed water bottle. The tips began to glow bright green.

"Ok, we know they work. Ready?"

Benny nodded and held up his shirt exposing his thin stomach. Ethan aimed the dowsing rods at his friend and held his breathe. For one brief glorious moment nothing happened… then tips began to shine.

"No it's not possible," whispered Benny as he dropped his shirt and fell back onto his bed. "This cannot be happening."

"Wait a minute B," said Ethan suddenly as a random thought popped into his head. "Here hold them and point them at me. Trust me on this."

Benny took the wooden rods and pointed them in the Seer's direction. Sure enough the tips began to glimmer.

"Look they're pointed at me and they're still glowing. I don't think they can tell the difference between a Spellmaster, a Seer, or magically created baby."

In frustration Benny tossed them aside and watched as they clattered across the ground before hitting his satchel. The tips began to glow again.

"They don't even work right, there's nothing supernatural about my backpack."

"Isn't your spell book in there?"

"No, just school books, my leftover lunch, and Rory's cookie from earlier."

"You kept the cookie? Stephanie probably spit-"

"There are more important things going on right now than a stupid cookie! How else am I supposed to find out if I'm… that?"

"We could ask your Grandma when she gets home," said Ethan softly as he took a seat next to him. "She probably knows a bunch of spells about detecting pregnancies."

"There is no way I'm going to my Grandma," said Benny as he shuddered at the thought. "If she found out she'd kill me."

"Then I guess we have no choice," said Ethan as he held up his cell phone. "I'm going to have to call in my secret weapon."

He opened his contacts, selected _For Emergency Use Only_, and waited. After a few rings someone picked up.

"What's up E-dog?"

"Rory I'm calling in one of the millions of favors you owe me," said Ethan as he got up and walked along the room. "I need you to do something, but you have to keep it secret, no one can know what you're doing or what you're going to get. And you can't ask questions, ok?"

"Just like a spy movie! Who am I going to take out first? Is it that jerk from the wrestling team? Or maybe that crazy old lunch lady with the lazy eye? If not then that one person in your science class has been trying to get you to cheat for-"

"No I don't need you to take out anyone I need you to go to the store and pick up some… um…." He looked at Benny who was now lying with his face buried in a pillow. "Some pregnancy tests."

Awkward silence. "Pregnancy tests? Why do you need those? Did you and-"

"No questions, just make sure no one recognizes you ok? I need them right away, so once you get them drop off at Benny's house. I'm counting on you Rory, don't let me down."

"You got it E-man!"

The line went dead and Benny looked up. "That's your secret weapon?"

"What other choice do we have, he's the number one vampire ninja for a reason. If anyone can get it without being notice it's him."

"I can't believe this is happening,"

"It's going to be ok," whispered Ethan as he rubbed his friends back. "If you didn't touch anyone then there's no way it could've worked. Think of this as more of a precaution."

"And if it did?"

Ethan said nothing and continued to rub his hand along Benny's back. For the next few minutes the two of them sat in uncomfortable silence.

"Benny…." whispered Ethan rather shyly. "Can I ask you something?"

"Mhm," responded Benny without lifting his head from the pillow.

"If the potion did work, and you are pregnant…. Then who do you think the other parent is?"

Benny sat up and looked him dead in the eyes. "What do you mean?"

"Well Erica and I both grabbed you at the exact same moment, so if you are having a baby," said Ethan as he felt himself turn bright red. "Then which of us do you think is the parent?"

Benny continued to stare into Ethan's soft brown eyes unsure of what to say. Erica was the girl he'd been crushing since he first laid eyes on her but Ethan had been his closest friend since they were kids. He saw Erica in the present but Ethan in his future... He thought about Sarah and how happy she made E, he couldn't ruin that…. Should he lie? Could he lie?

Before he could even put his thoughts into words there was a knock at the front door. Both boys shared a look before getting up and answering. Standing on the porch in a brown hat, sunglasses and fake mustache was none other than Rory.

"Didn't recognize me huh?" asked the blonde as he lowered the sunglasses. "Anyway I got what you asked for."

"Thanks," said Ethan as he took the small box and attempted to shut the front door. "I'll pay you back as soon as I can, promise!"

"Wait! Can I at least hang out?"

Ethan looked over his shoulder at Benny who shrugged his indifferently. "He's going to find out what happened eventually."

"Find out what?" asked Rory with a smile as he rocked back and forth and porch. He thought about it for a moment his happy expression turning into one of shock. "Did you and Sarah-"

"N-no," said Ethan trying his best not to blush. "W-were not even dating!"

"Then you and Erica-"

"No," blurted Benny unable to take the younger boy's goofy attitude. "It's for me ok."

"So you and Ethan-"

"N-no!" cried both boys as they turned a dark shade of red.

"First of all science doesn't work like that," said Ethan suddenly unable to look at Benny. "And second of all Benny messed up a spell and we're making sure it didn't work."

"Why didn't you say so?" said Rory as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. He took in the disaster that was the Weir house. "Whoa what happened in here?"

"Nothing," said Benny as Ethan handed him the small box. "W-what do I do?"

"You've seen the movies," said Ethan as he grabbed his best friend by the shoulders and pushed him towards the bathroom. "Just remember it takes a minute or two for the results."

"Good luck!" offered Rory before the bathroom door shut.

A few minutes later Benny came out looking even more exhausted than before. Ethan and Rory exchanged a look as their friend held up the small test. There was a bright blue plus sign.

"I-I'm…." He couldn't finish the sentence. He didn't want to finish the sentence. It was something a teenage boy should never have to say.

Rory let out a girlish scream before jumping up and down in joy. "I'm gonna be an uncle!"

"Then the potion did work," mumbled Ethan as he watched Benny sink to the ground. "Benny you're going to be a dad…."

After swearing Rory to secrecy, and promising him he could visit the baby all he wanted once it was born Ethan finally got him to leave. He let out a sigh and walked over to Benny who hadn't moved from his spot in the doorway.

"Do you want to play videogames?" asked Ethan unsure of what to say or do. "We can head over to my house and try out that new fighting game I got."

"No thanks," said Benny without really looking at him. "I'm ok."

"The new Z-Hunter comic was uploaded online last night, and I know you've been dying to read it."

"I'm fine."

"We could watch-"

"Ethan I don't want to do anything right now," mumbled Benny as rubbed his face. "I just-I just want to sit here."

Before Ethan could respond his cell phone went off, he picked it up and frowned when he heard Sarah's voice.

"Hey…. No I can't tonight…. Something really important came up…. Benny's not feeling well…. I'll let him know you care…. See you tomorrow."

Still frowning Ethan looked down at his friend. "When is your Grandma supposed to get home?"

"Late tonight."

"That settles it then," said Ethan as he crossed his arms. "Get your backpack and a change of clothes."

"Why?" Asked Benny as he finally looked up.

"I'm not leaving you alone when your like this. So get your stuff, and I'll tell my parents we're working on an assignment or something.

Benny nodded and spent the rest of the afternoon in absolute silence. At dinner both Ross and Samantha gave Ethan a curious glance in regards to the older boy's silent demeanor. On the way up to his room he thought about how smell had set off Benny's morning sickness, and headed for the kitchen instead.

"You don't have to worry about making breakfast in the morning," said Ethan as casually as possible to his mom. "Jane, Benny and I will have cereal or something."

"Are you sure honey?" asked Samantha as she cleared the table. "Because I picked up some fresh eggs today."

"It's ok, we'll manage."

"As long as you eat something, and don't stay up too late talking with Benny tonight you have school in the morning."

"Yes mom," said Ethan with a smile as he placed a kiss on her cheek.

When he got back to his room he found Benny setting up his blanket and pillows on the floor.

"I can sleep on the floor," said Ethan suddenly as he grabbed Benny by the arm. "You can sleep in my bed tonight."

"I always sleep on the floor," responded Benny flatly.

"What if it's bad for you and the-" He looked around and whispered: "You and the baby?" He noticed the way his friend flinched at the mention of the 'b' word.

"Ethan the it's not even two days old yet," grumbled Benny as he lay down. "And I don't want to talk about that right now, ok? I just want things to stay the way they are before everything changes."

Ethan nodded shut off the light. He lay in bed and watched as the hours slowly ticked by on his alarm clock. He rested his hands behind his head and looked up at the ceiling feeling uneasy. Though he couldn't see Benny in the darkness he could hear him turning restlessly on the floor. Given everything that had happened in the past few hours, he was probably thinking about everything that had happened in the past few hours. Ethan rolled onto his stomach, peered over the edge of his mattress and whispered:

"Benny…?" He spotted his friend curled up tightly in his sheets with his back turned towards the bed. "Benny you awake?"

No response. Ethan found it both strange and nerve wracking to see the older boy so quiet, and unresponsive. Where was the non-stop energy that kept them up late at night talking? Where was the spontaneous attitude that had on more than on occasion gotten them into trouble? And where was the smirk that not only convinced Ethan to have fun and live a little but also had brought a slight blush to the younger boy's cheeks. Unable to take the awkward silence between them, he got off the bed and sat cross-legged on the floor next to Benny.

"I know you're awake."

"Mhm."

"Are you ok?" Ethan mentally smacked himself for asking such a stupid question. Of course his friend wasn't ok, his entire life had just been turned upside down. "I mean besides the fact… you know…."

No response.

"Are sure you don't want to sleep on the bed?" asked Ethan unsure of how to approach the subject of his best friend's pregnancy. "It'll probably be easier on your body if-"

"I'm fine."

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"I don't want to talk about it right now E," said Benny without looking at him. In all honesty the only thing he wanted to do was talk about his _condition_, but talking about it only made it more real.

"You know you're gonna make a really good dad."

Benny said nothing.

"You're way better with Jane than I am," said Ethan as he lay down next to Benny. "And you can always make her laugh, even when she's upset."

"How can I be pregnant?" whispered Benny as his voice cracked.

"It's not your fault, it was an accident."

"I'm going to have to fed, take care of and raise a kid," said Benny as he turned to look up at the ceiling. "I can barely take care of myself let alone a baby. And how am I supposed to tell it, that it was an accident?"

"You're not going to be alone," said Ethan as he scooted closer their shoulders touching. "You'll have people helping you."

"Yeah once my Grandma gets over the initial shock and anger."

"So will I," said Ethan as he took Benny's hand in his and gave it a reassuring squeeze. "We've always stuck it out through the tough times, and this will be just another bump in the road."

"Was that supposed to be a joke?"

"Sorry," said Ethan with an embarrassed grin. "Feeling better?"

"Thanks Ethan," said Benny as he felt his eyes get heavy. "For everything…."

Ethan nodded and after a moment asked: "Did you think about who the other parent is?"

Before he could finish Benny was snoring lightly. Unable to pull away from his friend Ethan closed his eyes and drifted off into a deep slumber.

* * *

Samantha opened the door to her son's room and peered in. Instead of finding Ethan safely tucked away under his sheets she found him fast asleep on the floor with Benny's arms securely around him. She smiled softly, looked down at her watch and quietly closed the door as she backed into the hall. Five more minutes couldn't hurt anyone.


	4. The Cookie Conundrum Part I

A/N: So this two part chapter has been brewing since chapter 2! If you don't believe me go back and look for the following terms: cookie, Stephanie and lunch lady. Every three or four chapters sums up a story arc that deals with Benny coming to terms with a various aspect of his pregnancy while fighting off some supernatural force. This marks the end of the first arc, and also sets up the theme and problem for the second one! Oh and before I forget I'm going to be on a break for about a month while my co-author works on and hopefully finishes his stories! Same goes with Parentship! (That's why this chapter is so long) Any questions send me a pm and... Enjoy!

* * *

Feeling Something New

By AnotherSideTheOtherStory

Chapter 4: The Cookie Conundrum Part I

_Benny groaned when he felt Ethan get up, why would anyone want to get up from such a comfortable bed? He opened an eye in enough time to catch E as he looked down with a smile before grabbing a towel and heading off for the shower. He snuggled against the warm spot Ethan had just occupied and did his best not to think about everything that occurred in the last few days. Sure he was pregnant, but that didn't mean he had to acknowledge it. He was almost asleep when E returned with in nothing but boxers, wet hair and a disapproving smile on his face._

_"Come on," said Ethan as he grabbed the covers and gave them a gentle tug. "If you don't get up now we're going to miss our chance to eat breakfast before school."_

_"I don't want to school," groaned Benny as he pulled the covers back. "What if people notice?"_

_"Notice what?" Tug._

"_That I'm you know..." Pull. _

"_It's only been like three days tops," said Ethan trying his best not to laugh. "You're not even showing, and you won't for a few months." Tug._

"_What if it's obvious to some people?"_

_Benny noticed the hint of a smile on his friend's face and gave the blanket a hard yank. He flushed dark red when the younger boy stumbled forward and landed on top of him. Benny using his elbows for support sat up and felt his heart race. The only thing between them was a thin layer of clothes, and in Ethan's case that certainly didn't add up to much. Not only that but the distance between his lips and the __brunette's was non-existent.__ All it would take to kiss him was to lean forward and…._

_Ethan apparently still dazed by the fall failed to notice to strange and almost primal look in his Benny's eyes. "We should really-"_

_He never finished, because at that moment Benny leaned forward and placed his lips against Ethan's. To both boys a strange rush of emotions exploded forward, confusion, happiness, and uncertainty to name a few. They explored each other's lips for another moment before Benny finally pulled away, and when he did the younger boy was at a loss for words._

"_I-uh-we… did-"_

"_Sorry," mumbled Benny as he tried to scoot away an embarrassed smile on his face. "Hormones."_

_Before Ethan could respond Ross opened the door and peered in. "Just making sure you boys are up and getting ready… for… school." He took note of their position, and his son's lack of clothes. "I'll just…." He backed out of the room._

_Ethan looked down at their compromising position and jumped to his feet. "Wait! Dad it's not what you think! We were just-" He sighed and turned to Benny. "Well this can't get any more awkward… well it can if you don't tell me the truth about the baby."_

"_W-what?"_

"_Seriously if you think I won't find out then you're __going to be in for a big surprise. After all it is mine, now wake up."_

_"Wake up?"_

_"Your dreaming Benny," said Ethan as he gave him a kiss. "It's time to wake up."_

* * *

Benny yawned groggily as the dream crumbled and reality set in. He snuggled closer to whatever or whoever was next to him. Despite the fact he was laying on the floor in a makeshift bed, and two days pregnant; he was quite comfortable against the warm and soft object secured in his arms. He took in a deep breath and smiled when Ethan's signature shampoo filed his senses. Ethan…. The euphoria lasted only a moment as his stomach suddenly churned at the aroma. He scrambled to his feet and made a mad grab for the trashcan.

"Benny?" asked Ethan tiredly as he looked up in enough time to watch his friend lean over the white trashcan and begin dry heaving. He crawled over and gently rubbed his back. "Deep breaths buddy, deep breaths."

Once Benny was sure he was done he looked up and smiled weakly as Ethan handed him a bottle of water. "Thanks."

"Dry heaving is the worst," said Ethan sympathetically as he grabbed the towel resting on his computer chair. "Do you need me to get anything for you? Or do you want to use the bathroom before I take my shower?"

"I'm fine," said Benny as he took a swig from the bottle. "I think it was just your shampoo that made me sick."

"My shampoo?" asked Ethan as he touched a strand of his hair. "You must have smelt it when I was sleeping next to you." His face dropped. "B I'm so sorry I had no idea! I didn't mean to-"

"What are you apologizing for? You didn't do anything, I just have to learn what might set off my you know…" he paused for a moment before saying it. "Morning sickness."

"Are you sure you're ok?"

"I'm fine E."

Once he was alone he closed his eyes and thought about the dream, about kissing Ethan, and about telling him the truth. Oddly it wasn't that hard to wrap his mind around both the kissing and the fact Ethan was also the other parent in his magically created pregnancy. After all E has been there for most of his life, and as stupid as it may have sounded he knew he was going to be there for a long time after his pregnancy had come to pass. But what would a baby mean for their friendship?

Of course he could ignore it, just like Dream Benny had chosen to…. He got up and sighed, he didn't want to think about this now.

* * *

School came and went with nothing particularly exciting happening. Cookies had been handed out at lunch, a substitute teacher Ms. Meard, filled in for Mrs. Oppenheimer and kept considerable distance from Benny, and both Sarah and Ethan had flirted all day. The only thing that had struck Benny as odd was Rory; who had either forgotten about buying the pregnancy tests and the supernatural pregnancy or was being true to his word and keeping it on the down low. Whatever it was it worked in the Spellmaster's favor, and he chose not to ask or question it. The entire day had almost gone by without some pregnancy related question or symptom, well at least until Ethan brought it up as the duo walked home.

"Benny," asked Ethan timidly as he looked up at the sky. "Do you know who the other parent is?"

"Other parent?" asked Benny as he felt himself turn red. "I-I haven't really thought about it. I mean the only two people it could possibly be are either Erica… or you."

"I figured that much, but the more I think about the more I'm sure it might be mine."

"W-What makes you say that?" asked Benny trying to play it off as casually as possible.

"Well the potion was only supposed to work for an hour, and when Erica and I grabbed it you was definitely way past the deadline. Maybe you bumped into me, or I might have touched you on accident on the way to school or something."

Benny thought about it for a moment and told the first lie that popped into his head. "I think the one hour thing was for the best chance of getting pregnant and not exactly the deadline on the potion."

"Oh…." Ethan looked down. Was it in disappointment, relief or perhaps something else?

"Not only that I'm positive Erica grabbed me first in the hall." Benny's stomach growled and he changed the subject with a laugh. "Guess I'm hungry."

"You didn't eat lunch," said Ethan as his depressed demeanor quickly vanished into something more paternal. "And now that I think about it you didn't eat breakfast this morning either."

"I wasn't hungry." Another lie. "I didn't want to buy the school lunch because one I didn't have the money." Truth. "And two I don't trust Stephanie's cooking." Another truth. "Besides I haven't really been hungry today." Lie again. He was starving, but at the present the only way to deal with his pregnancy seemed to be ignoring it just as Dream Benny had, and look how well things had turned out for him. _He_ got to kiss Ethan.

"You're eating for two now," said Ethan as he reached into his backpack. He pulled out a green apple and handed it over. "You've got to remember to eat."

"I hate green apples," muttered Benny as he produced a cookie from his pocket. "Besides I'm a sweet eater."

"Is that one of Stephanie's cookies?"

"Maybe..."

"Don't eat that," said Ethan with a disgusted look. "You don't know what's she's done to it, and you should be eating healthy. Especially for the baby."

"Fine..." whispered Benny as he stuffed the cookie into his pocket and turned the apple over in his hand. "Did you mean what you said last night, about helping me?"

"Duh, we've been friends forever! I'll always be here to help, besides this is what we do best- strange supernatural stuff."

"Supernatural not so much, strange oh yeah."

"When are you going to tell Erica?"

"Tell Erica what?"

"That your pregnant with her baby," said Ethan in disbelief. "You're going to have to tell her eventually."

"About that…" whispered Benny looked at the apple and sighed. "What if I give it up for adoption? Nothing would have to change and everything would eventually go back to normal."

"Except you'd have to live with the fact you lied to her and your gonnna get a bump in a few months," said Ethan as he poked Benny's stomach with a smile. "And there's no way you can hide that, things are gonna change."

"I guess…." He hated when Ethan used logic. "How about I worry about telling Grandma first. Can you imagine what she'll look when she finds out her grandson is pregnant."

* * *

"I'd imagine she'd look like that," said Ethan as he pointed to very annoyed and angry looking Evelyn. He ducked behind Benny. "I'm scared."

"Benjamin Weir," said Evelyn as she approached them. "You destroyed my house, stayed over at Ethan's without my permission, and I found this in the bathroom." She held up box of pregnancy tests. "You better have a good explanation for what's going on."

"Grandma I can explain!" said Benny as he held up his hands and backed away. "I-I-I-uh-"

"Well come on then, what is it?"

"Benny's pregnant," blurted Ethan in fear for their safety. He watched as Evelyn gave him a confused look. "He wanted to get Erica's attention using a pheromone spell, but accidentally created a fertility potion. We destroyed the house looking for the dowsing rods to see if he was pregnant, and when they didn't work we had Rory go and pick up the tests. Please don't hurt us."

Evelyn's mouth fell open and she a minute she simply stood there in shock, and silence. Then she took in a sharp breath and pointed at the sofa. "Sit. Now." They did as she commanded. "Benny lay down, and lift your shirt up."

He did and she walked over to him. She waved her hands over his stomach muttered several incantations. A moment later his belly was giving off a light blue glow.

"Your pregnant," mumbled Evelyn in disbelief before sinking into one of the various chairs. "I was so worried about you getting someone else pregnant that I never thought about the fertility potion. I should've talked you about it the moment your powers appeared. I never imagined it would be like this."

"Grandma I'm sorry," whispered Benny as he pulled down his shirt and sat up. Tears were burning at the corner of his eyes. "You're not mad at me are you?"

"Mad? No. Disappointed that you were messing around with magic again? A little. But it is what it is."

"What did the blue light mean?" asked Ethan unable to keep his curiosity in check.

"It means he's having a boy."

"A boy," said Benny as a smile spread across his face. "A baby boy."

"There are a few things I must explain first," said Evelyn as she rubbed the bridge of her nose. "And Ethan I want you hear this as well, considering you spend so much time with my Grandson. First and foremost the baby will be small."

"What?" Asked the boys in unison.

"Pregnancies created through fertility potions always result in small babies, there's even a good chance he will be born premature."

Benny paled and Ethan patted his shoulder reassuringly.

"Second is the birth. Since you are a male things will be different, but equally difficult. The baby is currently surrounded in a magical uterus, and once that magic wears out labor will begin and you'll feel contractions. In order to deliver him we'll need to have the mother or father present. Since he was created with magic he's already linked with his parents."

"O-okay," said Benny uneasily. "B-but how am I supposed to give birth?"

"A teleportation spell. It'll be a long and painful process for both parents but we're gonna have to teleport him out of you and into the hands of his father or mother."

"Sounds kind of cool," said Benny sheepishly before suddenly frowning. "The other parent has to be there?" Evelyn nodded and he looked down depressed.

"Don't worry," said Ethan as he tried his best to look happy. "You have at least seven months to tell Erica about the baby, and there's no way she won't be there. Especially if that means putting the both of you in danger."

"Erica?" asked Evelyn as she gave him a strange look. "Erica is the mother?"

"Yeah Erica's the mom," said Ethan trying his best to retain his happy demeanor. "But if I know her she'll definitely be around to help."

They sat in silence, and it was eventually a growling from Benny's stomach that broke it.

"I should probably eat," laughed Benny as he produced the cookie once again from his pocket. He looked at the apple, then at Ethan, and then finally back at the cookie. "What?"

"That's it," said Ethan as he made a move for it. "Give the cookie!"

"No it's mine and I haven't eaten all day!"

"It's disgusting!"

"You don't know it could be delicious!"

"Stephanie made it!"

"I've earned this!"

"You shouldn't be eating it!"

"Babies love cookies!"

They rolled around the sofa before Evelyn got up and took the sweet from Benny's outstretched hand. "First and foremost Ethan is right, you shouldn't be eating sweets."

"Hah!" said Ethan as Benny huffed and turned away in an overly dramatic fashion.

"And second Ethan if Benny hasn't eaten anything all day then who are we to complain if he eats this?"

"Hah!" said Benny as Ethan huffed and turned away in an overly dramatic fashion.

"But that doesn't mean I'm going to let you eat it," she crushed it in her hand and opened her palm, there were no traces of it left. She handed him the apple with a smile. "It's better for you anyway."

Before Ethan could declare victory over Benny his cellphone went off. He gave an embarrassed smile and backed out of the room to answer it. "Sarah…? I forgot! No, I'll meet you there! Okay, can't wait to see you. Yeah... I-" He looked over his shoulder at Benny and quickly whispered: "I like you too, bye." He walked back into the room with a lopsided grin. "I forgot I was meeting Sarah at the movie theater tonight. I'll talk to you tomorrow!" He noticed the uneaten green apple in his friend's hand and added: "And don't forget to eat."

Evelyn turned to her grandson. "Erica? Is that really the best you could come up with?"

"W-what?" asked Benny defensively. "It's true."

"You're a terrible liar besides Ethan would be a better fit with you than Erica ever would."

"Grandma!"

* * *

"Give me that!" cried the black haired student as he reached across the table for some mysterious object. "It's mine! I got it with my lunch!"

"Bite me!" screamed the girl as she slapped him across the face. "I deserve it more than you ever will!"

"Wow," said Erica as she took a seat along side her friends. She watched as the argument began to turn violent. "That's the fifth fight I've seen today."

"Shouldn't we do something?" asked Sarah as she got up. "Hey you two! Stop it!"

Ethan, Benny, Rory, and Erica watched as she walked over to the couple. They turned her and began to yell. A moment later Sarah returned with an annoyed and distressed look on her face.

"So?" asked Ethan as he leaned forward. "What where they arguing about?"

"Cookies," said Sarah in disbelief as she picked up the one sitting on her tray. "They were arguing about these stupid cookies."

"Hey cookies aren't stupid," said Rory as he picked up the sprinkled covered one that came with his lunch. "They're like the second best thing, the first obviously being cheese dipped rat."

Benny made a face and pushed his bag lunch away. "Now that you mention it E and I did fight over one yesterday, but it was more in a joking king of way."

"You didn't eat anything," noted Ethan as he pushed Benny's bag back in front of him. "You should really eat."

"Maybe I'm not hungry E." He pushed it back.

"We should get rid of these things," said Sarah as she picked up her cookie. "Rory hand it over."

"No! This is mine, I've earned it!" He grabbed the one in her hand. "You don't deserve it."

"Rory?" asked Erica as she shot Sarah a strange look. "Are you ok?"

"It doesn't really matter if you're hungry does it?" responded Ethan as he returned the bag. "Or did you forget?"

"Maybe I'm choosing to ignore-Rory knock it off," said Benny as the blonde vampire twisted and turned to keep the cookies away from Sarah. The next thing he knew Rory kicked him in the stomach and took off into the air.

"Rory!" screamed Sarah in alarm as she stood up.

Ethan was at his friend's side in an instant. "Benny are you ok?" Benny nodded despite the pain in his abdomen and labored breathing. Ethan with some help from Erica got him back onto the chair.

"We should get him looked at," said Erica. "Rory can hit hard when he goes full on-"

"Rory what are you doing?" yelled Sarah as she watched the young vampire hover in the air next to Stephanie. "Have you lost your mind?"

"Oh but he has dear," said Stephanie as she removed her gloves. "You see ever since your two friends over there ruined my chances at being young forever I've been planning my revenge."

The students around them stopped moving and turned to face Ethan and Benny their eyes glowing a dark green. "With some help of these magical cookies and the entire student body I'm going to drain the youth from your friends and then once I have my powers back, I'm going to make sure every last one of you vampires is staked."

"Damn..." groaned Benny as he leaned forward trying to ease the pain in his stomach. "We... have... to... run."

"Get them!" screamed Stephanie as she pointed at the small band of friends. "Stake the girls if you must but I want the boys!"

Sarah, Erica, Ethan and Benny, with some help, ran as fast as they could and behind them the entire student body pursued. From all around Stephanie's cackle could be heard.


	5. The Cookie Conundrum Part II

A/N: Sorry about the half month hiatus, my co-author wanted to get some serious work done on his stories (and trust me he did). Anyway here's the second half to the Cookie Conundrum! If you're wondering about Parentship as of now I'm marking it as complete. There's really nothing else I can think of to do with the story. And fun fact several of the new arc words (two in total but they're actually both the same) were introduced in both this chapter and the last one! I'll let whoever figures out what it is name the baby! Thanks again and enjoy!

* * *

Feeling Something New

By AnotherSideTheOtherStory

Chapter 5: The Cookie Conundrum Part II

Benny stumbled into the classroom and leaned against the wall in the far corner. He lifted his shirt as gently as possible and bit his lip when he noticed the dark blue bruise forming on his stomach. He felt bile rise up in the back of his throat and forced himself to remain calm.

"_I'm fine," _he thought as he took in a deep breath. _"I'm fine, and the baby's fine… right? Its not even a week old yet so it has to be ok, it has to…."_

"How are you feeling?" asked Erica as she walked over. She noticed the bruise on his stomach, and squatted down. Gently she touched it and pulled back when he let out a whimper of pain. "Rory kicked you in full on vamp mode, he might've actually broken-"

"A little help here!" cried Sarah as she struggled to hold the door closed with Ethan. On the other side students and staff beat against it with all their strength uttering Stephanie's command over and over again.

"_Get the boys. Get the boys. Get the boys."_

"Look out!" yelled Erica as she pushed a metal cabinet forward, both Ethan and Sarah jumped out of the way as she pressed it up against the door. "Push whatever you can in front of it!"

Benny with help from Ethan got the teachers desk against the filing cabinet and stepped back when Erica and Sarah brought several bookshelves forward. A handful of student desks later they shared the same anxious look, their makeshift barrier would hold but the real question was for how long. Benny leaned against one the desks the sharp pain in his stomach now more of a dull throb. Ethan grabbed him by the arm and pulled him to the side.

"Are you ok?"

"I'm fine," answered Benny trying his best to smile. He inwardly cringed when he noticed his friend's shampoo and took a step back with a grimace. When Ethan raised his eyebrows he added: "I swear I'm fine, he didn't even kick me that hard."

"I don't-"

"We need to get out of here," said Sarah as she walked towards them. "It'll only be a matter of time before Rory joins them and once he does that door is as good as gone."

"There has to be another way out of here," whispered Erica as she walked over to the window and peered out at the field beyond. "We can fly, even if we carried Benny and Ethan we could probably make it a block or two before landing."

"That might work," said Ethan as he thought about it. "Benny's house is just a few-"

"We can't," said Sarah sadly as she looked over her shoulder at the pile of furniture. A loud bang echoed through the empty class as something collided against the other side. "Rory's faster than us, and not only that but like you said we'd be carrying Benny and Ethan. We would end up sitting ducks."

"What about the vents?" asked Benny as pointed at the ceiling vent above. "They're supposed to be connected to the entire school."

Erica flew up and removed the metal panel. She peered in and responded: "It's definitely big enough to hold us and it looks like it goes all the way down the hall."

Another boom resounded through the room this time accompanied by the sound of wood splintering.

"Good idea B," said Ethan as he patted his friend on the shoulder. The world went dark, and the only thing he heard was the soft utter of the word _'crying'. _A moment later he found himself surrounded by his friends and the horrible sounds of their current predicament.

"You know," said Benny as he gave Ethan a curious glance. "You pick the worst times to have visions."

"It's not like I can control it or-"

"Hey you two lovebirds can play catch up later," said Erica as she set up a desk underneath the opened gap. She hooked her hands and held them out. "We have five people to worry about, Benny first, don't argue just go."

Benny stood up and with some help from Erica made it into the vent; a second later Ethan joined him, then Sarah. When Erica didn't immediately appeared they looked through the opening. The blonde picked up a desk and with all her might threw it against the widow. It shattered outwards and in one smooth motion she joined them in the ventilation system.

"Always wanted to do that," said the blonde vampire with a smirk. "Something about destruction is just so much fun."

"What were you doing?" asked Sarah as she replaced the metal tile. Down below the barrier exploded inwards and Rory appeared with his fangs bared. The group quietly crawled forward before Sarah resumed her earlier rant. "You could've been caught."

"That was to throw them off our track. While they're busy looking for us outside we'll be making our escape through the school inside."

"That was pretty smart," said Ethan aloud as he examined the metal ventilation around them. "Why didn't I think of that?"

"You were too worried about your boyfriend," snickered Erica. "Don't think I haven't caught you these last few days pulling him aside where you think no one can see you and-"

"I-I was just making sure he was ok!" Ethan turned pink.

"Sure you were."

"I was!" Pinker.

"I don't hear your boyfriend saying anything." Pinkest.

"Knock it off you two," said Sarah as she let out a frustrated sigh. She turned to Benny. "Do you know how we can stop Stephanie and free the rest of the school or how she took control of everyone?"

"Huh? Uh…." Benny thought about it for a moment while trying his best to block out Ethan's shampoo. Why was the stupid mango scent so strong? "She used the cookies to make people angry."

"It did start with those stupid cookies," answered Erica as she reflected on the day's events. "But I don't get what that has to do with mind control."

"She doesn't have that much magic to start with." He took in a deep breath and felt his stomach churn. Stupid stupid mangos. "So she used the cookies to get people angry, then her magic feeds off the anger, and bam mind control."

"So how do we stop it?"

"Since she used something inorganic to create her spell, we need to use something organic to counter it."

"Like an apple?" asked Ethan as he pulled a green apple from his backpack. Benny, Erica and Sarah all gave him a look. "What? An apple a day keeps the doctor away."

"Doesn't that mean you'd have to charm a bunch of apples and get people to eat them?" asked Sarah as she continued to crawl along. "Or is there another way?"

"There has to be a signal source or some way Stephanie activated the mind control."

"She took off her gloves," offered Ethan. "It was right before the students all started listening to her."

"Then all we have to do is charm the apple with a counter spell and get her to hold it." The mango scent filled his sense and he gagged a bit. He looked up and turned red when he noticed the way his friends were staring at him. "A-and it should counter her control."

"Are you ok?" asked Erica seriously. "You a little pale, like you might throw up or something."

"I'm fine, I just need a moment to find the counter spell in my spell book."

They stopped and Ethan scooted closer to Benny. "Are you-"

Benny covered his nose and scooted away feeling embarrassed. He pointed at Ethan's hair and the Seer's eyes widened in understanding. "Oh."

"Oh what?" asked Sarah as she peered through the vent at the classroom below.

"N-nothing," said Ethan as he joined her at the vent. Erica rolled her eyes and mumbled something about Sarah being blind to her vampire senses. Ethan looked down at the classroom with her and frowned when he saw Ms. Maerd sitting at a desk.

"How come she isn't under Stephanie's control?"

"I guess she didn't eat a cookie," said Sarah as she stared at the substitute teacher. "I think the better question is how can she not hear the noise?"

"Maybe she's deaf and blind," said Erica matter of factly. "I mean there are plenty of teachers here who apparently don't realize some of the teenagers have been repeating twelfth grade for the last ten years or so and don't seem to be getting any older."

"I had a dream like this once," said Benny without looking up. "Except we were having tea and we weren't being chased by zombies trying to kill us and I wasn't... never mind."

"Wasn't what?" asked Sarah as she turned away from the view to look at him. "You can't keep us in suspense like that."

"I had a dream where both Ethan and Benny were dating," said Erica. "No wait... that wasn't a dream."

"We're not dating!" said Benny and Ethan in unison as they both turned dark red. Benny flipped another page in his spell book and said: "E toss me the apple."

Ethan tossed the green sphere and Benny caught it. He cleared his throat and uttered the enchantment word for word from the book. The apple began to glow blue before resuming its normal color. "All we have to do is get Stephanie to hold this and the spell should wear off it about three minutes. Ethan and I will-"

"No," said Erica as she took the apple from him. "Sarah and I will get the apple to Stephanie and you two stay hidden, ok?"

"What, why?" asked Ethan as he looked from her to Sarah and then to Benny. "You need our help, we can be distractions or something."

"No," said Sarah as she shook her head. "If Stephanie gets to you two then she'll drain your youth and kill you both."

"B-but-" began Benny. Erica held up a hand to silence him.

"You need to worry about yourself," her eyes flashed to his stomach and then back up to his eyes. "Especially now."

"Erica's right," said Sarah as she gave them a small smile. "We have vampire strength and speed; even with the entire student and staff at her side she doesn't stand a chance against us."

Benny and Ethan reluctantly agreed before they all continued along the vents. None of them were aware of Ms. Maerd as she looked up the ceiling with her dark purple eyes.

* * *

"So that was the cooking class back there which means…." Ethan thought about it for a moment. "If you go left here you should end up in the cafeteria."

"Ok," said Sarah solemnly as she noticed Ethan's worried face. "Don't worry we've done things like this a million times before. We'll be fine, I promise."

"And don't get any ideas about running off and trying to help," said Erica as her fangs appeared. "We'll see you in a few minutes."

They girls vanished along one vent while Benny and Ethan headed down another. Benny made a gagging noise and covered his nose. Ethan gave him his puppy dog look.

"I'm sorry B I forgot."

"It's not your fault E."

"I just feel bad I should've remembered after last time."

"In your defense you didn't know we'd get caught in a vent after being pursued by an army of zombies students and teachers controlled by Stephanie, unless you did... did you?"

"What? No!" They shared a laugh. "I'm your best friend and I should remember these things, especially if has to do with you being pregnant."

Benny rolled his eyes, and subconsciously pressed a hand against the bruise on his stomach. Why was Ethan acting so... so protective around him? Sure he was pregnant, but he didn't need protection. Ever since they had been little he had been the one taking care of Ethan, not the other way around. They crawled in silence until at long last they reached what appeared to the end of the vents. Benny covered his nose and turned to his friend.

"Where are we?"

"Janitors closet on the far end of the school."

Benny lifted the tile and jumped down. Ethan followed suit and the two boys found themselves in a small room surrounded by cleaning supplies. Benny felt his stomach jump as once again the mango scented shampoo filled his senses. He covered his nose with one hand and reached out for the handle with other. Ethan grabbed his arm and stopped him.

"We promised Sarah and Erica we would stay hidden."

"I don't care, they're gonna need our help, and I-"

"Benny you need to think about the baby," said Ethan as he took a step closer unaware of both Benny's blush and how close they were to one another. "Have you even stopped once today and thought to yourself 'maybe this is bad for my son?'?"

"We need to help Sarah and Erica!" hissed Benny his embarrassment turning into anger. He pulled his arm free of his friend's grasp and felt his stomach churn. "Not everything is about the stupid baby."

"You need to take care of your son!" yelled Ethan as he grabbed Benny's shirt and lifted it up. He saw the dark-colored bruise on his stomach and paled. Quietly he whispered: "You need to think about yourself too, haven't you been hurt enough?"

Benny pulled his shirt down and knew he was fighting a losing battle with both his body and Ethan. "You don't understand I'm-"

"I'm not going to let you go out there and get yourself-" Before he could finish Benny leaned forward and vomited. Luckily Ethan had jumped backwards avoiding most of the mess, his shoes not so much. The Seer opened the closet door and stumbled into the hallway before angrily yelling: "Benny!"

"I'm sorry," managed Benny as he followed his friend into the hall feeling embarrassed. He was definitely blushing, why was he blushing? Why should he be embarrassed? This wasn't the fist time he's accidentally vomited on Ethan's shoes, so why was he feeling so weird about it now? Before he could get any farther in his thoughts he noticed Rory standing at the far end of the hall. "Oh-"

Rory was at Ethan's side in an instant. In one fluid motion he knocked the boy sideways into the lockers before grabbing him by the throat and lifting him into the air.

"Let him go!" screamed Benny as he threw his weight about the vampire. The two of them stumbled onto the ground. Ethan collapsed against the wall watching his friends fight as he tried his best to catch his breath. The duo rolled across the floor punching and kicking and despite Benny's best effort Rory's was slowly gaining the upper hand. He felt the boy knee him in the stomach and felt a fresh wave of pain rush over him, in response he punched the blonde as hard as he could. No one was going to hurt Ethan, especially if he had a say in the matter.

"Benny!" screamed Erica as she zoomed down the hall. She caught Rory by the shoulders and using all her strength threw him against the lockers. He slumped forward unconscious. She reached out a hand and helped Benny to his feet. "I thought I told you to hide."

"You did," said Benny as he took in a deep breath. "But I accidentally threw up on-"

"What happened?" asked Sarah as she appeared at the end of the hall. She noted Ethan's bruised neck and was at his side in an instant. "Ethan, are you ok?"

"I'm fine, did you get Stephanie to hold the apple?"

"We did but-" Students and staff began to appear their eyes glowing green as they chanted the witch's command over and over. The small band of friends shared a look and prepared for a fight. "It's gonna take a moment to work."

"Great now we have to fight both teachers and students," said Benny as he looked at Ethan. "We're going to get detention for sure."

"You know what," answered Ethan with half a smile. "I've been chased, attacked, and thrown up on today. Detention actually doesn't sound that bad."

The mob stopped and from within Stephanie emerged looking younger than before. She took a step towards them and licked her lips.

"Three auras for the price of two?" Her eyes narrowed when she came across Benny and gave a loud cackle. "And not just that but a Spellmaster and Seer, I'll be able to live forever once I drain you dry."

She took another step forward before suddenly stopping. Whatever youth she had attain suddenly vanished, as little by little she turned to dust.

"No!" screamed the witch as she tried to reach out for the boys. "I can't! I was so close... so..." Then Stephanie was gone. All around the students and teachers began to disperse unsure of what had just happened or why they were hanging around school after hours on a Friday evening. The group turned to Benny for an explanation.

"She probably used her life force to create the magic cookies," whispered Benny as he looked at down at the dust. "When we countered the spell she didn't have any left and age finally caught up with her."

"Ow," moaned Rory as he stood up behind them rubbing his head. "What happened? The last thing I remember is- why is everyone looking at me? Do I have leftover rat on my face?"

"We did it," said Benny in disbelief as the excitement of victory washed over him. He jumped up then stopped when he felt a dull throb of pain in the pit of his stomach. "We actually did it!"

"Come on," said Erica as she grabbed his hand and motioned for him to follow her. "We need to talk."

"About what?"

She looked around then leaned forward and whispered into his ear: "About you being pregnant."

The impact of what she said was lost as Benny watched Ethan pull Sarah into a kiss. He felt tears well up in his eyes, and clenched his fists as he felt a fresh wave of pain in his stomach. Why was he crying? He never cried. Just like he never got embarrassed, or shy, or blushed especially around Ethan.

_"Stupid pregnancy,"_ thought Benny as he placed a hand on his stomach. He turned his back on his friends and silently wished things would go back to being normal. Particularly when it came to Ethan. Then he remembered his dream and the way he thought Ethan's lips would feel against his. _"Maybe it's more than just hormones... You know you like him."_

_"I don't,"_ thought Benny as he pushed the thoughts away and turned one last time to look over his shoulder. Ethan and Sarah were holding hands now, while Rory smiled happily. As for Erica she stood off to the side shaking her head back and forth in disapproval. _"And even if I did he has Sarah now..."_

He couldn't take any more of it, this had to be the stupid baby's fault. After all everything had changed, his feelings and friendship with Ethan, after he had taken the potion. He thought about the spell book, maybe there was some way to counter his pregnancy or just stop it all together. He had barely made it half a week, how was he supposed to manage nine months? These thoughts and more floated around his head and he headed home. Once outside he looked up at the sky and allowed himself one honest thought:

_"I don't like Ethan... I love him."_


	6. Reflections

A/N: Sorry for the delay, my co-author (Takarifan101) and I were having a serious discussion about the future of this story, and we have very different views on what's going to happen next. My co-author wants to actually scrap the whole thing and move onto his own projects, but I managed to convince him to stay on even if its only for the next three-ish chapters (the entire 2nd arc) (which we scripted out before the delay). As of now the story's future is up in the air, but I'll talk to my co-author Takarifan101 and see if I can convince him to stay and help give this story the ending it deserves.

But enough about that, this is the official start of Arc 2! Arc 1 dealt with Stephanie, cookies, and Benny coming to terms with his pregnancy (which we'll see the results of here!). Last time no one guessed the arc word (or baddie for that matter), so I'll put the offer up again. If you can guess who the baddie is, or what the theme is (it's hidden in plain sight) then you get naming right for the baby! Enjoy!

* * *

Feeling Something New

By AnotherSideTheOtherStory

Chapter 6: Reflections

_The crisp evening air, the glow of the full moon, and the look of Ethan's face as he admired it were more than enough to convince Benny the hike to the top of Heartford Hill had been worth it. He watched with a warm feeling in the pit of his stomach, as Ethan stood silhouetted against the moon, lost in its almost hypnotic glow. The younger boy turned to face him, and whispered in awe:_

"_This is incredible B."_

_Benny nodded but heard nothing. He felt his heart race; found himself lost in Ethan's soft brown eyes, and smiled as that warm feeling within transformed into something more. It was at that very moment, bathed in the light of the moon; under the glistening stars of Whitechapel that he knew his feelings for Ethan was more than just simple friendship. It would take a while for him to accept it, but that single instant would be forever etched into mind because it was at that moment Benny Weir fell in love with Ethan Morgan._

* * *

Benny woke up with a jolt and looked around wearily before realizing he was in the safety of his room. He looked down at his spell book and remembered with a sick feeling he had been searching for a way to cancel out the pregnancy, or as the spell book so aptly put it 'abort'. He knocked it off the bed with a frustrated kick and lay back on his pillow as he stared up at the bare ceiling of his room. He gently touched his stomach and winced as he made contact with bruises from Rory's kicks.

"_I should really get it checked out," _thought Benny to himself as he lifted his shirt up. He turned away from the sight and quickly lowered it again. "_But if I don't want the baby then maybe…."_

He mentally scolded himself. Just because he was depressed over watching Sarah and Ethan kiss didn't mean he had to take it out on his son… their son…. How was he supposed to tell Ethan now? It was pretty obvious from the way E and Sarah were holding hands that they were officially a couple and the fact he was having Ethan's baby might put a serious damper on that. Could he ruin his friend's chance at happiness? Did he have a right to get between Ethan and the girl he was in love with?

Of course there was also the matter of Erica and her apparent discovery of his condition. Pushing the thoughts away he got up with a yawn and took seat at his desk before sketching madly away on a blank paper. If there was one thing he could do to escape his thoughts it was draw. His pencil danced across the page and little by little the lines became more than just a simple sketch. He smiled when it was done, and grabbed another fresh page. He skillfully moved the pencil across the white surface and felt his heart rate increase as emotion filled his sketch. His mind never wandered, and powered by a single thought he continued to draw. That one word swirled around his mind, and at the moment seemed to make up the entirety of his existence.

_Ethan," _thought Benny as the world faded from view around him. Instead he was lost in that memory, that one memory._"Ethan, Ethan, Ethan."_

"Benny." His Grandma's voice shattered the illusion around him, and in it's place his room appeared. "Could you come down here?"

"Coming," managed Benny as he stretched out his arms and cracked his knuckles. He looked up at his clock and realized that he had drawing for the better part of an hour. He quickly slipped his drawings into his sketchbook, and headed downstairs. His stomach growled, and he realized he had eaten since that morning. He dreamed of all the things his Grandma might have made for dinner, and for the moment forgot about all his problems and instead thought about sinking his teeth into some freshly cooked chicken. His mind was still on food when he reached the bottom step and was surprised to see instead of dinner, Erica and Rory sitting in the living room along side his Grandma. Before he could comment on anything he was suddenly pulled into a hug.

"I'm so sorry!" wailed Rory as he squeezed Benny tight. "I didn't remember anything, and when the told me what I did I felt so bad! I would hurt you! I love you and the baby and Stephanie was controlling me and I swear I would never ever do anything like that!"

"Rory," squeaked Benny as he felt himself going purple with lack of oxygen. "S-stop."

"You're crushing both of them right now dear," said Evelyn as she pulled her Grandson free from the blonde's grip. "What's this about you being hurt?"

"Nothing Grandma."

"Nothing?" asked Erica in disbelief as she stood up. In flash she was at his side, and in one single fluid motion she pulled his shirt up and motioned to the bruise. "Does that look like nothing?"

"Why didn't you tell me about this sooner?" demanded Evelyn she bent down to examine the dark bruise on Benny's stomach. He turned away shamefully, and in response she muttered a spell under her breath. The dark purple and blue skin returned to its normal color, and as it did Evelyn let out a sigh of relief, she could still sense the baby's tiny spark of life. "The baby's fine, the magic that created it also serves as protection, but it's not fool-proof. The further along you get the weaker that protection becomes, you have to be more careful."

"Yes Grandma," said Benny as he dropped his shirt and looked over angrily at Erica. "Why are you even here?"

"Oh you know," said Erica as she took a seat and waved her hand around in the air. "I was in the neighborhood, thought I'd stop by make sure you were ok, especially considering you were pretty much Rory's punching bag today, ran off after Ethan and Sarah swapped spit, oh yeah and pregnant."

"How did you find out?" asked Benny as he took a seat and looked accusingly at Rory. "Did you tell her?"

The boy shook his head and held up his hands defensively. "Wasn't me, I swear, I always keep promises. She's the one who came to me and told me she knew everything. I just wanted to come to make sure you were ok and E wanted me to give you this."

Rory handed him a white bag and Benny curiously reached into it. He pulled out a small stuffed rabbit, a green binky and a small note with a gift card attached.

_I wanted to come over with Rory but after you left Ms. Maerd appeared, caught sight of the damaged lockers and gave both Sarah and I detention. That led to a call to my parents and now I'm grounded for the weekend- no phone, no computer, or anything else. Looks like we won't be able to see World War V, I still have my walkie-talkie though, do I need to say anything else?_

_-E_

"Rory didn't tell me, I figured out it on my own because of my vampire senses," said Erica as she looked at Rory and clicked her tongue. "You and Sarah are so focused on fighting you forget our sensing ability." The boys gave her a curious look and she sighed. "If you showed up for a council meeting every now and then you might actually learn something. Anyway each person has a unique smell that reflects their aura, and Benny right now you have two."

"Woo," said Benny sarcastically as he put the gifts back into the bag. He looked at her cautiously and said: "You figured it out, just don't tell anyone. It's… embarrassing."

"How is it embarrassing?" asked Rory with a dreamy smile as he rubbed his own stomach. "You're having a baby, that's like the coolest thing ever. I wish I could have a baby."

"Ok Rory's awkward wish aside, how the heck did this happen?" asked Erica as she leaned forward. "And don't say-"

"Magic," said the two boys in unison.

"I swear that's the universal excuse for everything you do."

"You have no idea," said Evelyn as she stood up and headed for the kitchen. "I'm making chicken tonight, and yes that is an invitation for the both of you if you'd like stay for dinner."

"No thanks m'am!" said Rory as he shook his head. "I promised my mom I'd be home for dinner tonight."

"Thank you for the offer," said Erica with a smile. "But I already ate."

Once they were alone Rory turned to Benny with a dead serious expression: "Do you really forgive me? What if something happens to the baby because of what I did? I kicked you-"

"I'm not worried," said Benny as he placed a hand on his stomach. "I know you were under Stephanie's control, you'd never do something like this on purpose." He gave him fist bump. "Besides I'm only half a week pregnant, and Grandma says he's fine."

"He?" asked Erica suddenly as she gave him a confused look. "How do you know it's a boy?"

"Magic."

"Of course."

Rory's phone went off and he looked down with a sheepish grin. "Looks like I got to head home, take care, eat your vegetables, and I'll see you around!"

When he left Erica turned to face him, cleared her throat and asked the last question he wanted to hear: "Is Ethan the dad?"

"W-what?" asked Benny as he turned a bright red. He shook his head and tried his best to regain his composure. "W-why do you think Ethan's involved?"

"Two reasons: the first is what I said earlier, I've seen Ethan watching out for you, trying to get you to eat, making sure you don't get hurt and more. And second remember how I said I smelled two auras on you?" He nodded. "That second is a mixture of yours and Ethan's which means that the baby has to be-"

"Yours!" exclaimed Benny suddenly without thinking. "Remember when you grabbed me in the hallway? Well that was right after I took the maternity potion, and since you were the first person to touch me then the baby has to be your son!"

Erica stopped talking for a moment and looked him over. She shook her head in disapproval, and after a few minutes of silence she said something he never expected her to say.

"I liked you Benny, in fact I used to have a crush on you, but I know that you don't feel the same way about me. I can tell you have your heart set on one person, and I don't think you've accepted that yet. If you want to go ahead and tell everyone that this baby is mine then I have no problems with that. But think about it this way, every time you say that you're going to be denying those feelings. I'm here to help, but I don't want to be the one to ruin a relationship before it even starts. You can be honest with me, I won't judge or laugh or anything, is Ethan the dad?"

"It's-" He felt his heart race. He could say it, he could say it, he could say it! "It's you Erica." He couldn't say it.

She sighed. "If you need anything then call me, and Benny tell Ethan how you feel. Because if you don't then you might lose him, and I'm not saying that Sarah's a bad person. But I am saying Ethan hasn't made up his mind yet, and even though you may not realize it, you have."

Erica bid him goodbye, and once he was alone Evelyn entered the room. She took a seat next to him and patted him on the leg. "She's right you know."

"About what?" asked Benny as he pulled the small rabbit out of the bag and turned it over in the light. With each new detail he took in he felt his stomach flutter, this was real... He was really going to have a baby, and not just any baby but Ethan's... He was going to be a dad...

"About Ethan, he hasn't made up his mind yet, but you have." She kissed him on the forehead before getting up. "You never lose by loving, you always lose by holding back."

* * *

It wasn't until Sunday night that Benny worked up the courage to search his room for the old walkie-talkie Ethan had given him. He lay on the floor and reached under his bed feeling around the mass of random objects. After a few moments and several oddities he found an old box filled with a bunch of childhood items. Sure enough among its contents of old video games, his dream journal, and a strange electronic giga-pet, was none other than the small black walkie-talkie. He turned it on and clicked the button on the side.

"E, are you there?" Nothing but static. "Hello E?"

"Benny!" came the sharp and sudden reply. "Are you ok? Did Rory wait to give you my gift? I've been so worried, my parents have me under total lockdown. I haven't talked to anyone since Friday, are you ok?" The next part he whispered: "How's the baby?"

"We're fine," said Benny as he took a seat under his window. He looked up at the bright stars, thought about the night they climbed to the top of Heartford Hill and smiled. "Sorry it took so long for me to get back to you I..." What was he going to say, better yet what could he say? He was afraid of his new emotions? He was afraid of what Ethan might say about being a dad? He wasn't sure if he could pull this off? Instead he opted for a much simpler explanation: "I couldn't find my talkie."

"Oh," answered Ethan as he let go of the button and looked up at the stars above the city. It was a beautiful night out, but it left him... empty. He thought about the way Benny had wrapped his arms around him, and felt his heart race a bit. "I thought you might be ignoring me."

"What gave you that idea?"

"Well the way you ran off after Sarah and I kissed, and you didn't talk to me until tonight. And the more I think about it you've seemed off since I started trying to go out with her. Are you mad at me for dating Sarah?"

_Dating Sarah._ Those words hurt more than any punch or kick Rory had thrown on Friday. Imagining those words was easy to handle, but actually hearing them, in real life? It was something else. "I'm not, but can I ask you something E?"

"Yeah, what's up?"

"Why?" asked Benny as he held the small green pacifier in his free hand. In nine months he was going to be a dad. He was going to have a son. It didn't feel real before, but now it did.

"Why what?"

"The gift bag. It was really awesome and I like it, but why?"

"I-" Ethan was thankful they were in different houses. He took in a deep breath and looked at his reflection, he was blushing. "I thought it would be a good way to cheer you up. I know you've been upset about being pregnant and everything, and I thought that maybe if you held onto to something to make it more real that... never mind it's stupid."

"No it's not," answered Benny truthfully. "I was in a pretty dark place on Friday. I was thinking about aborting the baby, and after being kicked I secretly hoped it had... had died." No response just static. He felt so ashamed of himself but he had to keep going. "I didn't want to be pregnant, and then... then I realized this is my son and... and I felt so stupid. I don't know why I'm telling you this but I just needed to tell someone..."

"It's ok." If there was one thing Ethan was good at it was putting Benny's feelings into the simplest of ideas. "You're scared."

"I was but seeing this pacifier and that toy bunny it made me realize that this is happening. I've accepted it now," Benny began to laugh as he finally said it aloud. "Ethan I'm pregnant and I'm gonna be a dad."

Ethan smiled and raised his hand in victory. He would never say it aloud, but the whole purpose of that gift had been to help Benny accept his pregnancy, and for all intensive purposes it worked. If there was anyone who could understand Benny, really understand him it was Ethan. In his moment of pride he asked: "So you're going to keep him?"

"I... I didn't think about that."

"Even if you don't then at least he'll have something to remember you by." _"Stupid, stupid, stupid!"_ thought Ethan as he smacked himself. _"Why did I say that? Why would I say that?"_ That's when he realized the tight feeling in his stomach, he was nervous... but why? "You still there B?"

"Yeah…" whispered Benny as he looked down at the ground. He hadn't even thought about giving the baby up for adoption. If he did then Ethan didn't need to know about being the dad. He frowned, could he really give up his son to protect his best friend from the truth?

"Did you..." Ethan steeled himself. He needed to ask this, he needed to know. "Did you talk to Erica yet?"

"Yeah, she's ok with it but I think we're going to give the baby up for adoption." Ethan didn't respond, and he never did. As the hours passed by Benny lay in bed, and held the device close to him. He imagined his dream, about kissing E, holding him tight in his arms and after a moment whispered: "G'night Ethan."

* * *

A/N: Yes lots of drama this chapter, and an obvious flaw in Benny's plan, a really obvious one. (I'll give you a cookie if you guess what it is!) And don't forget you get naming rights if you can guess Arc 2's word and theme! I'll see you guys next week with an update and hopefully better news about this story. Until then take care!


	7. In The Days Gone By

A/N: Sorry for the delay again. My co-author (Takarifan101) and I were talking about the future of 'Feeling Something New' and he's determined to be off the project after this arc wraps up which either means a rushed ending or an incomplete story (which sucks because we discussed what baddies were going to show up in the final two arcs and they were gonna be so cool not to mention the hints he's placed for the finale which still blows me away. He does most of the plot planning and writing while I work on the relationship aspect). We're going to spend another week trying to come to some kind of agreement (which I feel bad doing because I haven't given him a single moment to work on any of his own stories) and hopefully I'll have better tidings next week!

So enough of that here's the lay down for Arc 2! I split this chapter into two parts because of its size but it all deals with the same theme (Benny and his feelings for Ethan/the baby's dad) and heads into another two-parter! For now enjoy! If you have any questions please PM me and I'll do my best to get back to you!

Oh and kudos to Shyfly92, Nerdy-Loser22-R5-Niffler13 and Bethan Forever for guessing right on the flaw in Benny's plan. As for the baddie I'm not going to reveal that until the two-parter coming up. No one got the arc word which means if you can guess it you'll get the name the baby!

* * *

Feeling Something New

By AnotherSideTheOtherStory

Chapter 7: In The Days Gone By

Benny for the first time in recent memory went the better part of two weeks without seeing Ethan outside of school. It was one thing to see his friend while under the watchful eyes of the school's faculty and another completely to just spend time hanging out with him. Every time he tried to whisper to E in class, or talk with him in the hallway he always got one of same four responses:

"Can't talk right now, I'm supposed to be meeting up with Sarah," or "Is it really ok to be talking about this in public? You never know whose listening," or "I'm supposed to hang out with Sarah tonight", and his personal favorite: "We're supposed to taking notes, shh."

It also didn't help he was having a hard time sleeping as well. Every few days he'd experience the same dream, if you could even call it that. It wasn't a nightmare as he was never afraid, but it wasn't the peace his mind was looking for at night either. If anything it was more like he was reflecting on something, but whatever it was, was always forgotten by the time his brain could function properly. The feeling of something important would be there but the reasoning behind it wasn't.

Of course all of this was topped off by the constant thought of putting his son up for adoption. Ever since holding the small stuffed bunny Ethan had given him Benny's mind had kicked into overdrive. He no longer thought of his pregnancy as a problem, and instead had taken to worrying about what would happen after he gave birth, when it was time to decide his son's fate. He wanted to keep him, to hold him tight and never let go... But that would mean coming clean to E about both their son and why he had hidden the truth in the first place. Could he really give up his boy because he couldn't face the truth about his feelings for E? Could he give up a piece of not only himself but of the man he was in love with? Was it right to break up a family before it even had a chance to really start?

As all these thoughts and more floated around his head he found it impossible to focus on the homework in front of him. In a fit of frustration he tore the paper in half before crumpling it up and throwing it to the ground. He leaned back in his chair with an aggravated sigh and stopped when he realized Erica was sitting across from him on the other side of the table. How could he had forgotten she was here helping him study?

The blonde vampire gave him a curious look before she closed the biology book resting in front of them. With a sympathetic smile and a gentle voice she said:

"I think this would be a good time for us to stop." When he shrugged his shoulders dismissively she crossed her arms and asked: "What's bothering you?"

"Everything," grumbled Benny as he lay his head down on the table. After a moment he looked up at her and continued: "I keep having these dreams but I can't remember what happens, Ethan's been ignoring me for almost two weeks, I keep thinking about if I should put the baby up for adoption, and I need to pass biology if I want to actually spend summer with my friends. Oh and on top of all that I'm a pregnant teenage boy."

"This is why teenagers shouldn't have children," said Evelyn as she walked through the room. "It's bad enough that you kids you have your hormones all over the place, but throw in a pregnancy? Even I won't have enough life experience to help out with this drama."

Benny turned bright red, and Erica despite her best attempts not to couldn't help but laugh. When they were once against along he turned to Erica and said:

"We... we haven't had a chance to talk about the baby since I told you about him last month... Do... do you think it would be better for him if we put him up for adoption? I don't want to give up our son but-"

"Ok hold on there," said Erica as she held up her hands and shook her head in disbelief. "Benny I told you if you wanted to tell people the baby was mine until you worked out your own feelings for Ethan then that was going to be ok. But don't you dare think for a minute I have any say in what you're going to do with that child. The only person whose opinion should matter besides your own is Ethan's."

"But that baby isn't Ethan's," said Benny in frustration. "It's yours!"

She sighed, and looked down in deep in thought. After a few moments of silence she reached out for his hand and whispered:

"Do you remember how I told you that I could smell the baby's aura on you?" He nodded unsure of where she was going with this. "I said the second aura smelled like a mixture's of yours and Ethan's. I'm gonna be honest with you Benny, I know for a fact that the baby's other parent is Ethan. I know you have feelings for him, and I know your trying to hide that. It's like I said last time, the more you try to convince yourself that none of that is true the more it's going to eat away at you."

"W-why would you even say that?" demanded Benny as he pulled his hand away from hers. Erica had to be the other parent, she had to! He thought about his dream, Dream Ethan had told him that the baby was his, and Erica just confirmed it but... He felt his emotions rush forward, he couldn't tell Ethan, he couldn't keep the baby... He wasn't... he didn't... "It's... It's not Ethan's... It can't be..."

She gave him a smile and began to put pick her things up. As she stood she added: "You need to seriously think about your own feelings, especially before you make a decision you can't turn back from."

He followed her to the entry way and slowly reached out to open the door for her. They locked eyes and for a second he felt something familiar in the sympathetic smile. Reacting on instinct he quickly leaned forward and placed a kiss against her lips. Erica's eyes widened in surprise and when he pulled away she was wearing a stupid smile. He however felt worse than before. Trying her best to figure out what had just happened Erica said:

"That was… unexpected."

"Yeah…." He cast his eyes down in shame. "Sorry..."

"Was it really that bad of a kiss?" asked Erica trying to make a joke of the situation at hand. She noticed his sudden darkened mood and gently led him over to the sofa before sitting him down. "Obviously you still need to talk."

He looked around and with a small blush whispered: "Promise you won't laugh at me?" She nodded. "I had a dream where I… I kissed Ethan and it was the most amazing feeling ever. It made me feel like the world was clear, I felt all warm and it was… right. It's a feeling I've been getting around him when we hang out… and for a moment I thought I felt the same way around you so... yeah."

"Why are you so against that idea that you might like Ethan?"

"Because," Benny thought about it for a moment, where was the heart of his discomfort? There were so many reasons, and for the first time he had someone to talk to about them. He took in a deep breath and began: "Because I don't want to! I'm… I'm afraid he won't feel the same way and I'll lose him. What if it makes him hate me, or worse? I-I'm not…" he struggled to say the word, and after a moment blurted out: "I'm not gay! I don't like guys… I like Ethan… I love Ethan but I don't want to. I don't think people understand that I need him in my life and that he's so much more than my friend or just a crush... These last two weeks made me realize how important he is to me…. And I guess I've known for a while how I've felt but still…." He felt tears well up in his eyes. "I don't want to feel this way I don't want things to change!"

"Talk to him. You don't have to tell him about being the baby's dad right off the bat but you should let him know how you feel. I know your afraid of him rejecting you, but right now," she placed a hand on his flat stomach. "You have so much to lose if you say nothing. It's not just your future anymore, it's your's, his, and the baby's."

"Thanks Erica," said Benny as he gave her a sheepish smile. "Sorry about kissing you."

"It's fine," said Erica with a dismissive wave and a dreamy sigh. "Anything to help you realize your feelings for Ethan."

* * *

It took Benny another few days to once again work up the courage to contact Ethan. He turned his cellphone over and over in his hand before deciding a text messages would be too impersonal. He thought about video-chatting him and decided against it, his emotions were all over the place and the last thing he wanted was to cry in front of E. He picked up the walkie-talkie off his nightstand, took in a deep breath, and wandered over to his window. He peered out at the starry sky and felt his stomach tighten nervously. It was just like the night he had watched the moon rise, he dropped the talkie and took in a deep breath trying to calm his nerves. He couldn't talk to him, not yet.

He sat miserably at his desk and picked up the small pacifier. He thought about holding his son, and then stopped. No, he couldn't do that, if he was going to give up his son then he wanted nothing to do with him especially after the birth. What would Ethan do? Erica was right, he needed to tell E how he felt before he did something stupid. In one fluid motion he grabbed the small black device, pressed the large button on the side and said:

"E can we talk?" Silence. He looked out the window and directly at his friend's room. There was no going back now, and he certainly wasn't to give up without a fight. "I know you're home I can see the light on in your room."

There was another moment of silence before Ethan's voice suddenly rang through. "Yeah what's up B?"

He held onto everything Erica had told him and blurted out: "Why are you avoiding me?"

"I..." He heard a door close on the other line and let out a pent up breath when Ethan's voice returned. "Sorry I didn't want my parents or Jane to hear anything. About avoiding you... this is going to sound stupid but I wasn't trying to avoid you. I'll admit I was a little mad at you-"

"Mad at me?" Instead of anger he felt the strange hollow feeling return. "Mad at me for what?"

"Well listening to you talk about being scared of being a parent and thinking of abortion it made me realize how much you were going through. I never thought that there was so much to it, and then you told me how you talked with Erica and..."

"Yeah and?"

"You said you wanted to give the baby up for adoption. At first when you mentioned adoption I tried to be happy for you, but when you said both you and Erica agreed to it... it just bothered me so much. I know I might be out of place saying this B, but I want to be honest with you too. I never thought you would do that, you always fight for the things you care about. So how could you even think of adoption? It's your son! Your flesh and blood, don't you want to hold him and at least try to be a family?"

Benny felt tears well up in his eyes, whether it was from relief or the honesty of his friend's words he didn't know, but they were there. Leave it to E, to once again cut to the heart of the situation and his own repressed emotions.

"And I wasn't ignoring you… I was trying to find a part-time job, I thought maybe if I earned some extra money I could help you and Erica pay for the expenses and you wouldn't have to give up the baby."

Benny began to laugh, he was crying and laughing. He didn't know how to respond, what could he possibly say? Thank you for being a father to the child you don't even know is yours? That he didn't want to give the baby up for adoption? That all he wanted to do was kiss Ethan and call him his? Instead he managed:

"I only said that because..." _Say it! Tell him how you feel! You have to tell him!_ "Because I hadn't thought about it before. I didn't know what to say and I didn't want you to worry about our son."_ Did I just say that?_

"Benny you're my best friend, I'm always going to worry about you. Especially now since they're two of you to worry about."

_He didn't notice! _"You don't have to get a job though, I… I just want to spend time with you. I thought you were ignoring me because you were dating Sarah."

"What? I would never do that, why would you even think that?"

"I don't know... hormones I guess." Static followed by the sounds of Ethan laughing on the other end, it was music to his ears. He smiled thankful that the tears had stopped and began to laugh once again.

"I guess I can hold off on getting a job if it means hanging out with my best friend. Just promise me you'll think about trying to keep the baby."

"Promise," said Benny as he placed a hand on his stomach. He thought about the small life he was harboring and felt his heart swell. This wasn't just his son, it was Ethan's too. And just because he didn't have the courage to tell E how he felt didn't mean he could turn his back on their baby. But what if he couldn't give it the proper care it deserved? What if he wasn't a good parent? The more he thought about it the less he was certain of anything. "Thanks for everything E."

"That's what friends do for each other, doesn't Erica do anything like this for you or the baby?"

"I don't think Erica's quite sold on the idea of being a mother yet, anyway I need to get back to my homework. See you tomorrow."

Ethan bid Benny goodbye and jumped onto his bed feeling better than he had in the past few days. The conversation had gone better than he had expected, and to top it off Benny was actually thinking about keeping their baby... He stopped and felt himself turn red. It wasn't his baby, it was Erica's... Of course that didn't mean he couldn't just sample the idea right? He cleared his throat and said aloud:

"Benny's having our baby."

"That's not possible," said Jane as she opened the door and gave him a strange look. "Everyone knows boy's can't have babies."

"H-how long were you listening for?"

"Long enough to know to take health class again."

"G-get out!" yelled Ethan as he threw a pillow at her. She dodged it with ease and stuck her tongue out at him before vanishing down the hall yelling: "Mom Ethan's being mean!"

When he was sure he was alone he lay back down with a large flush across his cheeks. He closed his eyes and found himself once against thinking about Benny and the way he held him when they were sleeping. His touch had felt so much more welcoming than Sarah's, and so much more...alive. Little by little his eyelids grew heavy, and as sleep overtook him he felt the familiar pull of a vision. Nothing but darkness, and in it the soft whisper of the word: '_he'._

* * *

Another month went by and with it another set of nights plagued by the strange dream. Benny rubbed the back of his neck and took a long swig from his thermos. Thankfully it was one of his easier mornings which meant the threat of his coffee making a return visit was little to none. He lowered the glass and frowned. Why couldn't he remember it and why did he have this feeling he needed to? The only positive was that it served as a distraction from his feelings for Ethan, which as much as he hated to admit, he had made little progress in solving. He looked up and raised his eyebrows when he caught sight of his friends disapproving stares. He gave them a lopsided grin and doing his best to sound innocent asked:

"What?" When Ethan and Rory continued to look at him he added: "Its just tea."

"No it's not," said Rory as he sniffed the air. He tapped his chin and after moment mumbled: "Don't ask me how I know this but that's a half-caff low fat latte mocha chino no foam."

"Give it," said Ethan as he made a grab for the thermos. Benny held it far above Ethan's reach, and stuck out his tongue in defiance. They could take away his soda, and his sushi but there was no way in heck he was giving up his coffee without a fight. "Benny give me the coffee now!"

"No it's the only thing that's keeping me going!"

"Give it to me!"

"I need this!"

"It's bad for the baby!"

"If it's really my baby it loves coffee!"

"Rory grab the thermos!" There was a flash of blonde and at the far end of the hallway Rory re-appeared. He held the thermos up triumphantly and did a little dance. Benny and Ethan exchanged a look before they both darted after him. Benny reached out for the blue-bottle and stopped when Ms. Maerd emerged from one of the class rooms.

"What is going on here?" demanded the teacher as she approached them her heels clicking against the tile floor. For the first time Benny noticed the lack of any details in her face, she was so... average. She stopped in front of them with her hands resting on her hips and asked: "Are you three rough-housing in the hallway?"

"N-no ma'am," managed Rory as he gave her a weak smile. "We were just standing here talking, and being awesome friends."

She glared at them each in turn and stopped when she came to Ethan. "Don't think I've forgotten about you destroying the lockers last month. Stern may have run a loose ship here but when I'm in charge that's going to change. I've got my eyes on you."

She turned around and vanished around the corner. Once she was gone the three of them shuddered, there was something unnerving about her.

"I thought she was only was a substitute teacher for Mrs. Oppenheimer," grumbled Benny as he looked longingly at his thermos. "How the heck did she end up in the running to be the new vice principal?"

"No idea," yawned Ethan as he began to walk away. "I'm just glad she won't be teaching soon I always feel sleepy when we're in Home Ec."

"I know what you mean," said Rory as he looked around with a worried expression. "I fell asleep once in her class and I had the worst nightmare ever, I can't remember what is was about though...' His eyes went unfocused and he turned to Benny with a smile. "Have you and Erica thought about a name for the baby yet?"

"N-no," mumbled Benny as he felt himself turn red. Ever since his conversation with Erica whenever someone mentioned the baby in front of Ethan he always blushed. "I've thought about a few names but I haven't actually talked with Erica about them yet."

"I say you should wait," said Ethan as he stuffed his hands into his pockets and gave his friend a smile. "Wait until after you feel him kick or move around, because until then you don't really know him. Plus you're not even showing yet."

"Makes sense."

"What am I supposed to do with this?" asked Rory as he held up the thermos. "I don't drink coffee."

"I don't know," said Ethan before Benny could respond. "Drink it for all I care, just don't let Benny have any."

Rory took a swig and when he did his face lit up. "Wow this is really good!" He was gone in flash. Benny looked down miserably and looked up when he felt Ethan place a hand on his shoulder.

"I didn't want to say anything in front of Rory, but you only drink coffee when you have nightmares. What's on your mind?"

Benny looked at him and thought about the strange mix of emotions his friend now inspired. With a weary smile he simply said: "Just stressed out that's all."

"Anything I can help with? Keeping all that stress inside isn't good for you or Benny Jr."

"Well... I-" Before he could finish he caught sight of Erica and Sarah walking towards them. "Never mind."

"How are you feeling?" asked Sarah as she gave Benny a smile and took Ethan's hand in hers. "Any morning sickness today?"

"He only gets sick," said Erica with an evil grin as she stepped in-between the couple and pushed the Seer next to Benny. "If your boyfriend's wearing that mango shampoo and gets too close to him." When nothing happened she happily declared: "Looks like he's the clear today."

"That's because," said Ethan with a small blush. "I threw them all away when I found out it made Benny sick."

Erica looked at Sarah who simply nodded and said: "It's true, I miss the way it made Ethan's hair smell though. Nothing distracts from blood like a mango smelling boyfriend."

Benny watched sadly as Ethan blushed before placing a quick kiss on Sarah's cheek. Erica noted his expression and rolled her eyes before saying: "I still can't believe you accidentally knocked yourself up trying to make a love potion for me."

"I can't imagine how bad the symptoms must be," said Ethan as he took Sarah's hand in his. "But you're a third of a the way there."

"At least you aren't experiencing any side-effects from the love potion part," said Sarah trying her best to be optimistic. "So there's a plus."

"What do you mean?" asked Benny as he crossed his arms.

"Well Ethan said you accidentally mixed up the love potion with the fertility one, but that you did put pheromones in it. So if you drank the fertility potion then there has to be hints of the love one it right? I'm just saying you should be glad there isn't a bunch of people chasing after you madly in love, or that you're not madly in love with a bunch of other people."

Benny thought about it for a moment. Logically it made sense that the love potion should work, after all the rest of it did... But if it did then that meant he would've fallen in love with the first person he had touched... He looked over at Ethan and felt the cold truth dawn on him, and as it did he felt weak. Was it possible his feelings for Ethan were made by a spell, and that none of them were real? The idea made his stomach churn.

"I'm gonna be sick," managed Benny as he turned away from the group and thew up on the floor. The girls let out a disgusted scream before backing away with their hands covering their noses. He felt someone rub his back, and when he looked up he found himself looking into Ethan's kind brown eyes. It couldn't be possible... could it?

* * *

_The moon was rising in full view of the open field and Benny stood before it bathed in it's glow. He closed his eyes and took in a deep breath as the nighttime air brushed against his skin and slowly ruffled his hair. All around fireflies buzzed creating small specks of light and in their illusion he could see own turbulent emotions. He smiled when they swarmed around him forcing his gaze to the far end of the field. Standing at the edge of darkness and light Ethan waved his hand back and forth beckoning him over._

_"Dad..."_

_Benny smiled and slowly began to walk towards his friend. As he did the stars in the sky above him began to blink out one by one leaving nothing but the inky darkness above. He started to walk faster feeling uneasy in the rapidly vanishing light, when he did the ground stretched out to impossible lengths. By now he was running to get closer to his friend, he needed to get closer to E, he needed to tell him something._

_"Dad..."_

_No matter how hard he tried the field kept getting longer, and longer, it was impossible to get any closer. He watched as Ethan's hopeful smile turned into disappointment and felt his own heart sink. The green grass wilted before his eyes, and he called out as loudly as he could. He wanted to get closer, needed to get closer to E._

_"Dad..."_

_Sarah appeared at Ethan's side and took his hand in hers. She looked at him, then turned to Benny and licked both her fangs and lips. In one fluid motion she pulled Ethan into the shadows just beyond his sight. The fireflies went grey before collapsing to the ground. He fell to his knees and watched as the moon behind him turned blood-red before vanishing leaving him in complete darkness._

_"Dad wake up!"_

Benny shot up in bed drenched in sweat and looked around wildly for the voice that had called out to him. When he saw no one he lay back down feeling worse than he had in months. Resting on his nightstand was his spell book opened to love potion spell. He turned away from it with tears in his eyes. Underlined was the simple statement:

Side effects include sudden enamoration with the first person you may come in contact with. This includes sudden dreams, 'visions', a desire to protect, that 'warm fuzzy feeling', a longing to spend more time with said person and more. Symptoms last until the magic works its way out of their system.

He held the stuffed bunny tight against his chest, and tried not to think of Ethan. He didn't like Ethan, he liked Erica. He thought about kissing Erica, then he thought about kissing Ethan. The warm feelings, the desire to be with both. Then he thought about Sarah, and laughed. He wasn't going to ruin that relationship, hot with how happy they were together. His hand fell to his stomach and he frowned. As long as he was pregnant it was entirely possible his feelings for Ethan were fake. At that moment he made up his mind, he hated his son, and wanted nothing to do with him. He lay back down and closed his eyes, and fell asleep with a single word on his mind: 'adoption'.

_"That's a bad idea Dad."_

* * *

A/N: A lot of little things moving towards one big event! Let's just say the two-parter coming up is going to be a game changer! And that the arc word should be obvious (go back a few chapters and you'll see there's something that just keeps happing), it's almost like the theme and the baddie's name is one in the same... Hmmm... I'll see you in a week!


	8. Emotion Commotion Part I

A/N: So good news and bad news. Bad news first, this story is officially going to reach its end by chapter 10. Originally the outline called for 20 chapters, but my co-author put in his two-week notice and without him on board I don't feel like completing the project. Takarifan101 (my co-author) doesn't really think its popular enough for him to continue to put so much work into it and he wants to get back to his other stories. It kinda makes sense but I'm still sad this story won't get to see its full potential.

But here's the good news, while 'Feeling Something New' may be finished way before it was planned to, you'll still get a pretty solid conclusion. Not the one I wanted, but it wraps up most of the plot points, except for a few (namely Ethan's one worded visions), especially the ones presented in this chapter referring to future arcs (Eric's warning and Doctor G's reference to something). I didn't want to take them out because if I do decide to come back to this story then I want to pick up right where I left off.

No one guessed the theme, but by the end of this three parter it'll be obvious. These three chapters have been brewing since the Cookie Arc so I hope you enjoy. And I just want to give a special shout out to Takarifan101 for lending me two of his characters, both from his story Benny's Baby (it's not an Ethan/Benny fic but it's still a pretty good read). Read on and enjoy!

* * *

Feeling Something New

By AnotherSideTheOtherStory

Chapter 8: Emotion Commotion Part I

Benny walked home with a smile on his face and most if not all of his problems temporarily forgotten. For starters he had aced his recent biology test, gotten perfect marks on his past five assignments, and to top it all off since starting his fourth month of pregnancy the morning sickness had finally stopped. Not only that but he had finally talked with his Grandma about putting up the baby for adoption. Whether she approved or not, she hadn't been anything but supportive. He thought about the baby going to a family where both the parents would be in an active part of its life and felt the tiniest twinge of regret.

"Everything ok?" asked Sarah as she noticed the sheepish smile and light blush on the Spellmaster's face. "You look like you're on cloud nine."

"I bet it has to do with that A on his test," said Ethan with a grin as he walked hand in hand with his girlfriend. "All those late night tutoring sessions finally paying off?"

"Yup," said Benny immune to the hollow feeling his friend's relationship now inspired. He thought about telling them his plans for adoption and then decided against it. He knew they wouldn't approve and there was no reason to spoil his good mood. "Things are finally going my way."

They both gave him smiles and stopped at the sidewalk between the Morgan and Weir households. With the promise to hang out over the weekend they parted ways. He watched as Sarah entered the house while Ethan hung behind and stood awkwardly in front of him.

"Everything ok E?" asked Benny knowing full well that something was bothering his friend. Sarah might not have picked up on it, but he could read E like a book, and the brunette was definitely turning something over in his head. "And don't lie to me."

"This is gonna sound stupid, like really stupid but," whispered Ethan as he turned slightly red and kept his eyes focused on the ground. "But I think that maybe the-"

"Come on Ethan!" called Sarah as she reappeared on the porch. "You promised tonight would be the we'd watch Stars Wars together for the first time."

"Never mind," said Ethan as he backed away with a half-hearted smile. "It was nothing important, I'll see you later and make sure you eat you eat something because I saw how you skipped out on lunch today."

Benny watched as his friend darted off and felt the distinct pang of hunger in his stomach. He shrugged it off and thought about the way things would be after the baby was out of his life, when things would go back to being normal. For now he would do what he had done these past few months: ignore the pregnancy. With a smile he headed into his house, he had better things to do than worry about eating for the stupid baby…

* * *

Which apparently involved his English teacher. Benny stood in the doorway for a moment and let the sight of Mr. G, dressed in a lab coat sitting casually across from his Grandma while drinking tea, sink in. They both turned to look at him and the next thing he knew the man was shaking his hand and talking.

"It's been so long since I've seen you Benjamin, how are you feeling?"

"You just saw me," said Benny as he closed the door and gave his teacher a strange look. "Like an hour ago in class. What are you even doing here?"

"This isn't your teacher," said Evelyn without standing up. "This is the Weir family doctor."

"Doctor G," said the man as he let go of Benny's hand and motioned for him to sit. "You've met my twin brother, we're two of three siblings with the same passion for helping young minds. He wanted to teach, and I wanted to heal. But all that aside I'm here to check up on you, and the little one inside of you."

"I didn't know we had a family doctor," said Benny as placed his backpack on the floor and took a seat next to Evelyn. "How come I haven't met you before?"

"Because you haven't had a reason to," said Doctor G as he sat in the chair across from them with his legs crossed. "I deal with the supernatural illnesses, such as mixing vampire and werewolf blood, people who are allergic to their own powers, and in this case magically created children."

"Magically created children?"

"Believe it or not your are not the first person to accidentally impregnate themselves," Benny felt himself turn bright red. "And I'm more than certain you won't be the last. I apologize for not arriving sooner but your Grandmother here assured me she was keeping a sharp eye on you. I'm not sure if you know this but one upon a time she was a nurse under my tutelage, and one of the very best at that."

"That was a lifetime ago," said Evelyn as she took a drink from her cup. "Enough with the past you're here to make sure my future great-grandson is healthy."

Benny cast his eyes down, that was the first time she had addressed the baby as anything more than just a baby. Doctor G stood up and clapped his hands together before asking:

"Do you mind if I speak with your Grandson alone? I'm afraid I need to ask a few questions he might not feel comfortable answering in front of you."

Evelyn nodded and a few seconds later Benny found himself alone with the Doctor. Doctor G gave him a smile and pulled both a clipboard and pencil from the depths of his white coat.

"I'm going to ask you a series of simple questions about the pregnancy and if you can answer them to the best of your ability I would greatly appreciate it." Benny nodded. "First off, how was the child conceived?"

"I was trying to create a pheromone based love potion and accidentally used the fertility one instead."

"Ok," he scribbled something down. "Do you know when the baby was conceived?"

"January twelfth."

"And it's April fifteenth now," said Doctor G as he checked his watch. "Ok, we can mark down labor for as early as June and as late as November…. Do you know biologically speaking, who the other party involved is?"

"If you're asking about the other parent then yes I know who they are."

"Excellent that makes things much easier than I expected. Have you had any sexual intercourse since-"

"NO!" yelled Benny as he thought of Ethan. He felt himself go red and shook the thoughts out of his mind. "W-why do you even need to know that? Don't you need to check on the baby instead of asking me questions or something?"

"It's just standard protocol," said Doctor G as he scribbled away on the clipboard. He tucked it back into his coat and sat back in the chair. "Has your Grandmother talked to you about the birthing process yet?"

"She told me we're going to have to use a teleportation spell, that I'd probably end up giving birth early and that the baby would be really small."

"Unfortunately it's true, children created via magic are always born early and small. You can expect to go into labor as early as six months, and the fact this is going to be a home birth just makes it all the more worrisome. I wish we could do this in a hospital but the sterile environment has always had adverse effects on anything magically based."

"Is it normal to have dreams about the birth?" asked Benny as he looked up at the Doctor. "B-because I keep having the same dream over and over again. It's just after I give birth but I never remember what-"

The Doctor held up a hand and motioned for Benny to lean forward. When he did he placed both hands on his head.

* * *

_Benny leaned back on the sofa panting, and did his best to stay awake. The whole world was a blurry twisted mass of grey. He looked around wearily until he heard the sweet sound of crying fill the room. He tried to focus on the edge of the sofa and little by little a person emerged from the mass of the world. They said something but all he could hear was the sound of his son crying, the sound of a healthy baby boy. The person scooted closer and carefully handed him the small blue bundle. Benny tried to shake his head in protest but the figure leaned forward and handed him the baby anyway._

_The moment he was holding his son Benny felt a strange energy wash over him. He didn't want to but he loved the child, wanted to be a part of its life, he couldn't give it up, not now not ever. He looked up at the figure and in a weary voice said:_

"_We… we did it Ethan."_

_"Wake up."_

_The person came into focus and instead of Ethan it was Erica. She gave him a huge smile. _"_We're parents," said Erica as she reached out to hug him. "We're really parents Benny!"_

_He looked at the baby and frowned, it had blonde hair and blue eyes. This wasn't right, this was wrong, everything about this was wrong. Ethan was supposed to be the one sitting next to him, not Erica…. Wait… wasn't it supposed to be Erica? Didn't he want it to be Erica? Weren't his feelings for E side effects of the potion? Everything stopped and Benny found himself alone in the suddenly empty world._

_"Wake up Dad."_

_He looked around wildly for an answer, and when he couldn't find one felt tears of frustration well up in his eyes. A bright flash of purple filled everything with color, and once the light faded he found himself staring at a teenager with his hood turned up._

"_You need to wake up," said the boy as he shook his hooded head in disappointment. "You need to wake up and fix this before it's too late."_

"_Who are you?"_

"_Think about it for a second," Benny's eyes widened and the boy snapped his fingers. "There you go." He reached up for his hood and the world faded from view. "Now wake up, and fix everything that's wrong with this! You have to WAKE UP!"_

* * *

Benny leaned back in the sofa and watched as Doctor G produced the clipboard once again and began to scribble away on it. After a moment he asked:

"Is the other parent of this child perhaps a Seer?"

"I…" He could say it, he could say. Just say the name... Just say his name. "I don't know."

"Benny I want you to be honest with me. Is the other parent by chance that young man you mentioned in your dream, this 'Ethan'?"

"Y-yes."

"And he's a Seer correct?"

"Mhmm," said Benny feeling embarrassed. That was the first time since his conversation with Erica he had said it aloud. It felt… almost relaxing to say it. "Ethan Morgan's the father."

"Then that explains everything, it's not unheard of for a child to inherit its parents' abilities. As impossible as this may sound the baby is having visions, which is an indirect for way it to communicate with you. This dream of yours reflects the inner turmoil of your mind. From what I felt and saw I'm sensing a mixture of emotions for not the only the child, but in regards to this Ethan as well. I'm going to go out on a limb here and saw you haven't told him he's the father yet have you?"

"He knows about the baby, but not that it's his and I wasn't planning on telling him either."

"Then the dream makes sense," said Doctor G with a sad smile. "I hate to be the one to say this but you need to tell Ethan about your son's heritage because he needs to present at the birth."

"He what?" Benny smacked himself, how could he so stupid? "I forgot about that…. What if he's not there?"

"Then both you and the child would be at serious risk. Once the magical uterus starts fading away the the baby needs to be delivered. Your body won't be able to handle the pregnancy once labor begins and both you and your son will die before he even has his first breath." Benny paled. "I believe this dream is a way of reminding you about that. Though there seems to be-"

"Can you just examine me and the baby and go?"

"O-of course," said Doctor G as he motioned for him to lie on the sofa. "This is just a simple aura procedure combined with my natural Seer ability. Shirt up please."

Benny lay down, lifted his shirt up, and stared at his lower stomach. He wasn't showing yet, but he had definitely lost the little muscle definition he had once had. He watched as the Doctor waved his hands over his stomach and felt a strange energy go through him. After a moment the Doctor smiled and said: "Any day now."

"Any day now what?"

"You should be getting a bump." He took a step back and clapped his hands."All done."

Benny looked up at him. "Is that it?"

"That's it, a few things I'd like to share with you before I go. First and foremost, you need to talk with this boy. It's important that he's present at the birth, and if you don't then I will be forced to speak with your Grandmother, and we both know how persuasive she can get. I rather it not come to that, and I'm sure you agree with me." Benny nodded earnestly. He produced the clipboard once more from his coat. "Second I detected a third faint residual aura on you. Have you been around another Spellmaster, Earth Priestess or some other supernatural force lately?"

"My friends and I fought a witch a few months back," said Benny as he pulled down his shirt and sat up. "But she turned to dust, I'm always around vampires though."

"Hmm…. no that wouldn't cause this. It's possible that your interactions with your son are generating it…." He scribbled something down. "If your hanging around vampires then I feel as though I should warn you about werewolves as well. Not many people know this but if you combine-"

"I don't know any werewolves, and I'm tired, can we just skip to the end."

"Of course. Be wary of physical activity, I heard about your stint with your mind controlled friend and if you engage in further fights it could result in a miscarriage. And finally you need to eat more."

"I eat plenty," lied Benny as he crossed his arms. "If anything I should be eating less."

"I know you wouldn't lie to me," said Doctor G as he peered over the top of his glasses at him. Benny felt his blood go cold and shivered under the cast of the icy stare. "Especially when it comes to life of your unborn child. After all you would never do anything to harm him, especially considering how he's relying on you to take care of your body which in turn takes care of him."

"O-of course not."

"Good. I heard you were thinking about adoption, and the Whitechapel Community Hospital has a program that helps those in similar cases to yours. Here are some papers if your interested." He produced several pamphlets from his coat pocket and Benny gave him a strange look. "It's a magically modified coat, makes it easier to get around the hospital without lugging things around. Anyway talk to Ethan about the baby, it's obviously causing you a bunch of internal strife. Not to mention I didn't need my powers to sense how much you care for him. Oh and here."

He handed him a small black ring and Benny gave him a questioning glance. "What's this?"

"It will allow to you control your actions and communicate with your son in the Dreamscape. It seems like he's trying to tell you something, but whatever it is, is beyond my powers of sight. Be careful though, the Dreamscape is unstable, if you find yourself stuck remember: something shocking will break the reality and wake you up."

The Doctor headed for the door, and Benny followed after him with one last lingering question. He took in a deep breath and summoning as much courage as possible asked:

"Is it possible the love potion side effects are mixed in with the pregnancy?"

"What? Of course not, that's impossible, the pheromone part of the spell would've been canceled out upon first contact with the other parent."

"Really?" asked Benny as he held onto the door for support. "Then-"

"You have no reason to not talk with this boy. I'll be back in a few weeks to check up on you, and I expect to see a healthy baby bump," he again gave him the cold stare. "And if I don't then I'm going to tell your Grandmother you aren't eating enough, and we both know how that will end."

"Y-yes sir!"

* * *

_Benny found himself sitting once again on the sofa, feeling exhausted and surrounded by the dark grey mass of the world. He looked down at his hand and did a double take when the ring on his finger began to glow. All at one the world came into focus and any of the strange feelings from before were gone. _

_"This must what Doctor G was talking about," whispered Benny as he looked around. "The Dreamscape."_

_"The one and only," said the hooded boy as he appeared in the chair on the other side of the room. He reached up and pulled the hood down. "It's good to see you again Dad."_

_"Y-you're not my son," said Benny as he took note of the boy's bright blonde hair and blue eyes. "Who are you really?"_

_"It's me," said the boy as his face fell. "Eric Alec Weir, you know your son, the Impossible Child, Icarus, Project Halcyon... How about the Faceless Men, Ringmasters or the Storyteller? Any of these ringing a bell? Remember when I babysat Matthew?"_

_"Why would I name you Eric? And why do you have blonde hair, you look more like-"_

_"Like Erica?" said Eric with a smile. "Did you expect me to look more like this?" He snapped his fingers and another boy appeared this time with Benny's dark hair and Ethan's brown eyes. "Why would I look like him? After all Erica's the other parent, and obviously you named me after her."  
_

_"B-but she's not... She can't be... It's... How did you do that?"_

_"This is the Dreamscape, since I exist here the rules of reality don't apply." He changed into a boy with wings, a child with scars all across his body, and then back into his teenage form. "__In the other places I've been I was a baby, a mute child, and an incomplete teenager. But this-this is honestly the first time that I haven't existed. I guess the Apotheosis didn't touch every dimension."_

_"What are you talking about?" asked Benny trying to follow the boy's logic. "You making less sense than Rory during his coffee high."_

_"I'm not here to tell you that you need to talk with Ethan," said Eric as he stood up and closed the gap between them. "I know you'll come around to your feelings eventually, you always do even it takes a while. He's important to you, and if he's important to you, then he's important to me. But I am here to warn you Dad, she's coming and she's going to try to hurt you. Wake up."_

_"Who's coming? What you talking about?"_

_"Wake up Dad." Cracks began to appear in the ground all around them. Eric looked around and cursed under his breath. "You need to wake up now before it's too late!"_

_"Tell me who!" He grabbed the boy by the shoulders. "Tell what's coming!"_

_"You won't remember the dream but first look at the reflection..." __The world shattered and Eric gave him a sad look before fading away. "I'll see you soon."_

* * *

"I do the wiggle man, yeah," sang Benny happily as he rubbed the sponge across his body. He danced around the shower feeling better than he had since the whole pregnancy started. Every since his appointment with Doctor G last week things just seemed better. His dreams had stopped feeling so foreign, and even though he couldn't remember them, they didn't bother him as much as they used to. He thought about the dark ring resting atop his cellphone and laughed, he might have worn it everyday but it hadn't really provided any help. He continued scrub his chest and stomach as he sang aloud: "I'm sexy and I know it!"

The words suddenly died on his lips. He let the sponge fall and felt a strange pride rush through him. He quickly rinsed off, wrapped the towel around his waist and looked at his reflection in the bathroom mirror. He picked up his cellphone and selected Ethan's number before stopping. He wanted to tell him, but could he? He felt the happy feeling go out from him and then looked up to meet his own eyes.

"No more of this," thought Benny as he turned sideways and stared at the small but noticeable bump. "I'm telling him tomorrow."


	9. Emotion Commotion Part II

A/N: Here we are almost at the end... The penultimate chapter of 'Feeling Something New', almost everything was leading up to this three-part event, so brace yourselves as Benny still has a few more obstacles to overcome. While I'm glad you get to see the story reach a decent conclusion I'm bummed you won't get to see the second half of what we had in store, which is both a blessing and a curse because the original ending was a roller coaster of emotions that my co-author did not prepare me for (and it would've been a doozy for those of you reading as well). If you want to know what would've happened send a PM and I'd be more than glad to show you the outline.

Also there might be some spoilers for the new 'secret chapters' of my co-author's story 'The Spellmaster's Mother'. Oh and on a second note this will also be my last story on this site. I'll explain more and save all my 'thank you's' for next update. I want you to enjoy the chapter!

* * *

Feeling Something New

By AnotherSideTheOtherStory

Chapter 9: Emotion Commotion Part II

"I do the wiggle man, yeah," sang Benny happily as he danced around in the shower. He felt great, excited, elated; anything that could be used to describe happy was applicable in this situation. He turned off the water and scrubbed away vigorously at his arms, legs, chest, and stomach. It suddenly occurred to him that something wasn't right. He looked around trying to figure out what was bothering him, when nothing out of the ordinary stood out he shrugged. He felt the cold chill of the morning air against his body. He shivered and quickly turned the shower back on.

The warm water poured down against him and he rinsed off the remaining soapy residue. He ran a hand through his hair and laughed out loud when he realized what had been bugging him. He was still wearing the ring he had been given a few weeks ago. After a moment of internal debate he decided against taking off, after all it kind of looked cool. He shut off the shower and wrapped the towel tightly around his waist. He looked at his reflection and smiled.

"Sexy and I know it!" cried Benny as he ran a hand down his flat stomach. It was going to be a good day.

* * *

"Where's Sarah?" asked Benny as he noticed Ethan standing alone on the sidewalk. The younger boy had his eyes cast downwards and a blush across his face. "What's the matter E?"

"Nothing," said Ethan as he looked up shyly and took Benny's hand in his. "I just can't get over the fact it's been a week since we stated dating, I just…. I've never been happier."

"Oh yeah," The days had gone by in a flash. He remembered his resolve, and his desire to tell Ethan his feelings. There was something else as well, something had always stopped him. It had happened that Thursday night, something so important that he needed to tell E how he felt, but wasn't it the same thing that had prevented him? He thought about it for a moment. When he couldn't put it together he chose to think about the day he revealed his real feelings instead, it had been right before Home Ec...

_Benny nervously tugged on his satchel as he waited in front of the classroom for E. His ironclad resolve from the previous night was weakening, was he really ready to do this? Could he do it? There was no question in his mind that he needed to, but deep down he didn't know if he could. After all this wasn't just another simple crush, this was Ethan; this was the person who made him feel complete, the one he couldn't live without. The more he thought about it the more he felt his resolve crumbled, he wasn't ready for this, not yet._

"_You ok?" asked Ethan as he approached him. "You look like you were doing some serious thinking."_

"_What? No!" said Benny trying his best to sound calm and collected. "I just… it's… never mind! It's nothing."_

"_Then let's get inside, if we're late then Ms. Maerd is bound to give us detention. She's been watching me like a hawk since the whole locker incident, and trust me I don't want to give her any reason to unleash her new vice principal status on me. Besides I wanted to ask you if you thought of any names for-"_

"Earth to B," said Ethan as he snapped his fingers in front of Benny's face. "You zoned out there for a minute, thought I lost you to your imagination."

"Sorry," said Benny as he shook his head and smiled sheepishly. He looked down at the crack in the sidewalk and then back at his boyfriend. "I was just thinking about the day we started dating. I'm just happy we're finally together, and I can call you mine."

Before Ethan could respond Benny pulled him into a kiss. The younger boy moaned in pleasure before pulling away with a grin. "B, if you keep that we're going to be to class again."

"One more?" Ethan never got a chance to answer. Benny pulled him into another kiss and the next thing he knew was leading his boyfriend back into the house. So what if they were a little late to class?

* * *

Benny frowned when he found both Ethan and himself walking into school perfectly on time. Leave it to his boyfriend to end their make out session early for something boring as school. He smiled; there was something so perfect about the way Ethan and the word 'boyfriend' rolled around his mind. He was so lost in his thoughts he didn't notice the blonde kid with the coffee cup until it was too late. The next thing he knew both his shirt and pants were soaked with steaming hot coffee.

"I'm so sorry," said the blonde haired kid as he gave him a nervous look. "I wasn't paying attention, it's not until after I have my coffee that I _wake up_."

"It's fine," said Benny as examined the damage done to his shirt. "Geez."

"I'm really sorry it must've been so hot and-"

"Seriously I'm fine, I don't even feel it." The blonde kid blinked his blue eyes twice before nodding and darting down the hallway. There was something unnaturally familiar about him…. When Benny was sure it was just Ethan and him alone in the hallway he muttered a spell under his breath and clapped his hands together. The coffee stains vanished leaving him one hundred percent clean. "Ta-da!"

"You look great," said Ethan "But what's with the ring?"

"Ring?" Benny looked down at the small black ring on his finger and laughed. "Don't you remember? I told you about it… the day we started... dating."

"_Since when do you wear rings?" asked Ethan as he set his backpack at the foot of their cooking station. "It looks nice, but it's not really your thing."_

"_It's supposed to help me remember my dreams," said Benny as he absent-mindedly turned it around his finger. "But it hasn't really helped that much, the only thing that comes to mind is… Eric."_

_"Eric?_ _Oh… are you naming him-"_

"That's right!" said Ethan suddenly as he leaned against him. Benny's smile quickly faded as he took in the mango scent of his boyfriend's hair. Was that there earlier? He felt his stomach twist and took a step back. Ethan gave him a hurt look. "What?"

"Your shampoo, it reeks."

"My shampoo?" E have him a puppy dog look. "You told me you loved my mango scented shampoo."

"I do, but my stomach is acting up right now…." He looked at Ethan and then past him at the lockers, they were swimming before his eyes. "I think I'm going to throw up."

He darted into the nearest bathroom and stopped when he caught sight of the blonde boy standing at the far end leaning against one of the stalls. Ignoring him he grabbed onto the sink for support and leaned forward trying to repress his urge to vomit. Then all at once the feeling was gone.

"Sorry about that," said the boy as he approached him. "But I needed to get you out of her little scripted performance."

"What?" Asked Benny as he turned on the faucet and steaming hot water came pouring out. He took a step back and watched from the corner of his eyes as the boy shook his head. "What are you talking about?"

"Do you remember waking up this morning?"

"No." He tried to shut off the faucet and found its handle was stuck. "So?"

"How about the walk to school?"

"I do that everyday." Steam was filling the bathroom. "Why would I remember it today?"

"Ok, do you recall anything from the last week? Any memories of the time spent with Ethan? Anything at all?"

"I-" Benny stopped and looked up his rapidly disappearing reflection in the mirror. There was a large crack down the middle. "We spent a lot of time together…."

"Think really hard about what happened today," said the boy as he neared him. "You met up with Ethan, and what was the first thing you asked him?"

"Where's Sarah?" whispered Benny trying to figure out what the blonde was hinting at. "Where you spying on us?"

"Why would you ask that? Isn't Ethan your boyfriend? Don't you want to spend time with him? So why would you ask a question like that?"

Benny said nothing and tried to remember the day's events. "Because she's… his…"

"Think back to the moment you asked Ethan out," whispered the boy as continued to pace through the mist. "Think about everything that's bothered you today, what's missing?"

"I was waiting for him in front of Ms. Maerd's class, and we went in because I couldn't tell him…."

"Tell him what? I can't help you unless you put it together."

"He asked something about names…. And then it became clear… it was right there in front of us the entire time…." He placed a finger against the fogged over mirror and slowly wrote a single name down.

* * *

_"Eric? Oh… are you naming him after Erica?" asked Ethan looking more depressed than before. "It's a cool name I just didn't think you'd pick something so close to hers."_

_"N-no," said Benny as he put on the pink apron and thought about it. "I wasn't going to name him after Erica... it's just…" He looked at his reflection in the classroom mirror. He thought about the way he felt yesterday when he caught sight of his baby bump, that sudden want to stop hiding everything. Here with his clothes and apron on it would be impossible to see unless you actually touched it. When no one was looking he pulled shirt and apron tight against his body and puffed out his stomach as far as possible. He smiled, the bump was there, but it could easily be confused for a wrinkle or something. He thought about his son, and nodded to himself._

_"What are you doing B?" asked Ethan before his eyes fell to his friend's stomach. A huge grin broke out across his face. "Hey you're-"_

"_Would you two stop talking and take your seats?" demanded Ms. Maerd as she tapped her foot impatiently. "I'm trying to get class started here."_

_Benny rolled his eyes, caught sight of the board in the reflection and stopped. No… it didn't mean anything…. It couldn't mean anything…. It had to be some coincidence…._

* * *

"There are no coincidences in Whitechapel Dad," said the boy as he crossed his arms. "You figured it out, but by then it was too late."

* * *

_Benny walked as calmly as he could to his seat. He looked over at Ethan, quickly scribbled a note down and when he was sure the teacher wasn't look slid it over to his friend. The brunette picked it up and stopped when Ms. Maerd suddenly appeared over their shoulders. _

"_I'll take this," she took the note and strode to the front of the class. She turned to face the students, honed in on both Benny and Ethan, cleared her throat and began to read aloud._

_ "'Maerd's name spelled backwards is DREAM. Remember Rory's nightmare and the sudden sleepiness? I think she might be something supernatural'."_

_Mummers and whispers went through the class as the students turned to one another trying to make sense of note. Ms. Meard clapped her hands together and tilted her head to the side. _

"_I had hoped to feed here a little longer," Her skin turned white. "After all what better place to feed on souls, then in a high school?" Her teeth turned into sharp yellow fangs, and when she looked at them her eyes were glowing purple. "Innocent minds that still believe the world can be theirs if they try hard enough. It's nothing short of a buffet. It makes my tongue tingle with excitement."_

_Before anyone could react the monster exhaled filling the room with a light purple gas. Benny felt his body get heavy, collapsed back into his chair and fell against the desk. The last thing he saw before falling asleep was Maerd as she floated above him._

"_Sweet dreams Spellmaster."_

* * *

"Meard... Dream," said Benny as it read the reflection of the name aloud. "This is a dream, I'm trapped inside a dream."

"Yes!" screamed Eric as he jumped up. He placed a kiss on Benny's forehead and spun around. "Thank you Dad! Since you came to the conclusion this world isn't real then her illusions won't work on you anymore and I can finally help instead of just placing hints all over the place!"

"Hints?"

"Walking into you, spilling hot coffee to make you realize you can't feel anything, saying 'wake up', the cracks, the mango scented shampoo, yeah that was all me."

"Your supposed to be a fetus, how do you know all this?"

"Being spread across the whole of space and time tends to enlighten a person whether they want it or not. Sorry about the nightmares these past few months, they were the only way to protect you from her." He darted down into the hall and motioned for him to follow. "Come on!"

"Who or what is Meard?"

"Maeard's a Dream Wraith's which means she feeds off a person's soul through their dreams. She's been feeding off of other students since she started here but recently she's turned her attention to you. I guess something about being a Spellmaster makes you tastier. The only way to protect the soul is with nightmares, it sort of poisons the food supply. I was hoping to starve her out but it didn't work that way. So sorry about pushing your insecurities into your dreams, on the up side you seem to have come to terms with your feelings for Uncle Ethan, or is it Papa Ethan now? Keeping track of these things is almost impossible, you're welcome by the way."

"I didn't follow any of that," said Benny as he ran after the blonde boy. "Who are you really?"

The boy turned to him. "I'm your son, the Impossible Child, Eric Alec Weir, and I'm here to save your life."

"That doesn't really answer my question."

"Doesn't need to, what matters is that we've trapped her in this Dreamscape. Once a person becomes aware it prevents a Wraith from moving onto another dream. They can't feed and they're forced to wait until the person wakes up, it's like a temporary prison."

"Wait let me make sure I'm following you," said Benny as he slowed down. "You've trapped her inside my mind with us until I wake up from the magically induced sleep she put me in?"

Eric stopped. "When you say it like that..." He smiled. "Yeah not my best plan."

"You're definitely my son..." He followed the boy around the corner. "Wait... is that how I act around E? No wonder he get's frustrated when we're fighting monsters."

"Now's not the time for an epiphany Dad, we have bigger things to worry about."

"Yeah well excuse me for trying to better myself," said Benny as he absently touched his stomach. His eyes winded and he grinned. The small bump was there. "You're back, I mean he's back..." Eric looked at him funny. "Shut up I'm pregnant again."

"If mom could see you now," said Eric with a laugh as he turned another corner. "This has got to be the most entering place I've ever-"

"_YOU!" _They both turned and caught sight of Maerd hovering at the end of the hall. _"You may have escaped my control, but I will have your soul!"_

The hallway twisted around them. Arms made of shadows began to reach out as lockers came crashing down from all directions. Reacting on instincts Benny grabbed Eric by the arm and pulled him into one of the classroom doors. One of the arms latched onto Benny's hand and began to pull him back into the distorted hall.

"Close your eyes," yelled Eric as he grabbed the arm. Benny turned away and sure enough the arm suddenly let go before vanishing into the shadows. The door swung shut before vanishing. Maerd's reflection suddenly appeared on the board.

_"I will find you, I will kill you, and then when I'm done I'm going after your precious friends. Especially the boy you care so much about."_

Benny clenched his fists and stopped when he felt Eric's hand on his shoulder. The boy shook his head and Benny noticed that his blue eyes had turned purple and blonde hair, brown. "She's trying to get you angry Dad."

"If she thinks I'm going to let her hurt Ethan-"

"She can't get to him while she's trapped in here." Benny nodded in agreement and let out a pent up breath. His right hand began to go numb. "She's in control of the Dreamscape right now, but I think we can change that."

"How?"

"We need to crash it. A Wraith's body enters the Dreamscape when it feeds so if we break it while you're aware of the dream it should not only trap her but kill her as well... Ok I have a plan."

Benny nodded and stopped when he felt a strange tingling on his right hand. He looked down and paled, he was bleeding. "Is this... normal? I'm not hurt right?"

"Damn," whispered Eric as he examined the cut. "She's linked your mind and body, if you get hurt in here then your real body does too."

* * *

Benny's right arm swung lazily above the ground, as it did a small drop of blood fell to the floor.

* * *

"We need to hurry then," said Benny as he stood up and looked around. "What's your plan for stopping her?"

"Uh... It's a plan," said Eric evasively as he walked over the window and kicked it open. His eyes were blue again. "Not one you'll like, but it'll do for now. Follow me."

They jumped out the window and found themselves standing in the cafeteria. All around them students stood with their eyes glowing green chanting the same thing over and over. "_Get the boys. Get the boys. Get the boys._"

Behind the counter Stephanie cackled and in the air and next to her Sarah floated her eyes the same green as everyone else's. The vampire charged towards them and the next thing Benny knew he was flying through the air before crashing against the wall. The students closed in on Eric, and Benny struggled to stand. Sarah placed a foot on his stomach and gave him a sick and twisted grin.

"When the bow breaks the cradle will fall," sang Sarah as her fangs appeared. "And down will baby, cradle and all."

A hand appeared on the vampires neck and she let out a scream before collapsing to the ground. Eric stood behind him panting and his eyes glowing dark purple.

"W-what did you do?" asked Benny as he looked at his son and then at the students lying on the ground. "What was that?"

"A parting gift from the Ringmasters experiments on me, it's part of my plan," mumbled Eric as she struggled to catch his breath. "I was supernatural bomb in a past life, we need to hurry."

_"Keep fighting all you want, you cannot escape the inevitable. Once I have your soul I'll take your body and use it hurt your friend. Can you imagine the look in his eyes when he realizes the person he thought he could trust was killed and he didn't even know it? My mouth waters at the idea."_

They darted out the cafeteria and into the library. Benny cursed and looked back at the boy, whose eyes were now green instead of blue. "Where are we going?"

"We need to find Maerd's classroom, and then..." He looked down sadly, only to look back up with a smile. "Don't worry we'll stop Maerd and save Ethan."

"You keep telling me your my son but how is that possible? My son hasn't been born yet, and every time I ask you about it you give me some strange answer."

"It's... complicated."

Benny raised his eyebrows and motioned to the world around them. "We're trapped in a never ending dream high school chasing after the vice-principal whose trying to eat my soul. I don't think it gets more complicated than that."

Eric sighed. "You created me like you created him," he motioned to Benny's stomach. "A potion gone wrong, and ta-da a bouncing baby boy was born. It took you a while to admit who the mother was, just so you know it's Erica, and once you did something bad happened."

"What?"

"I got seriously sick and I sort of... died."

"You died?" asked Benny as the continued to walk past the endless shelves of books. "Wait your dead?"

"No I'm not dead, not technically at least. You brought me back, and then they arrived, the Faceless Men, and through some rather impossible events I scattered myself all over space and time. I'm not the son you're pregnant with, but I am your son from a different dimension, or a piece of him at last. It's always happens the same way though. I'm found, I live, I..."

"I'm supposed to believe my son from a different dimension is in my mind talking to me and has some strange purple power?"

"First of all it's not a purple power it's called the 'Touch of the Ringmaster', and I have it because like said earlier I was a supernatural bomb in a past life, and it allowed me to absorb it from Ethan after he was trapped in Pandora's Box. You don't have to believe me, but I need you to trust me."

"What does any of that have to do with me?"

"I always find you Dad," said Eric with a smile as he opened another door and they found themselves in the auditorium. "No matter who I am, or where I am I always find you and I do everything I can to make sure your ok."

"Isn't a parent supposed to protect their kids?" asked Benny as he placed a hand on his stomach. "If what you say is true then why did I let you do any of that? I would never let my son do anything like that."

"Really? Then why are you putting him up for adoption? Once he's out of your hands you may never see him again, and sure he'll go to a loving home, but what happens next? You hope things will go back to being normal? Wait until the birth to tell Ethan he's the other dad? Hope against everything Ethan doesn't hate you for giving up his son without actually talking to him about it?"

"I was going to tell him... I just can't be a parent and I don't think E would understand that."

Eric shook his head in disappointment and climbed onto the stage. "Don't lie to yourself, you're giving away your son because you can't accept your feelings and admit you love Ethan."

"That's not the reason why! I don't want a baby!"

"Really? Then tell me why every chance you get, you touch that small little bump you have? Like now, you may not realize it, but your touching it."

Benny looked down and turned red. Sure enough he had a hand resting on his stomach. "So what?"

"I just want you to be happy Dad." He placed a hand on the stage door and turned to look at Benny. He no longer bared any resemblance to Erica, instead he looked almost like Ethan except for the eyes, they were green. "Maerd's classroom is beyond this door. You ready?" Benny nodded. "Before we go in I need to tell you something. The only way to escape the Dreamscape is to shock the person whose sleeping awake. The best way to do that is to tell them something important, remember that ok?"

"Doctor G mentioned something like that," whispered Benny. "Why are you telling me this now?"

"Because Ethan's a Seer, his power is connected with the baby's which gives Maerd a chance to escape. You need to be ready to follow after her if something goes wrong."

"Won't you be there?"

"I exist in your mind, I won't be able to follow you if something happens and she escapes into Ethan's" Eric looked down sadly. "Ready Dad?"

Benny nodded and together they threw open the door. Floating in the middle of the Home Ec class was Maerd. Her white hair moved of its own accord, her hands and arms were long and distorted, and her face void of any emotion. The monster leaned towards them.

_"How did you escape my control?"_

"You don't everything about me," said Benny as he thought of his unborn son. "You forgot the most important thing in this perfect world."

_"And what's that?"_

"Me," yelled Eric as he grabbed a pot off the counter and swung it. It went through the Wraith, and both boys shared a worried look. Maerd began to laugh.

_"You do not belong here, you are an anomaly in this world. Allow me to end your existence."_

The creature flew towards them, Benny ducked and rolled to the side avoiding its wide swing. He casted a spell only to watch as it fizzled out. Eric went flying through the air and crashed against one of the cabinets. He caught sight of his son's purple eyes and frowned. The Wraith turned to face him and as she did a blurry image of Ethan appeared behind her.

"Benny!" screamed Ethan as he flickered in and out of existence. "Get out of here!"

_"How unique, a Seer with the gift to enter another's mind. Even in the depths of sleep you fight to protect him._"

"You have to protect the baby!" Benny and Eric turned to face one another unsure of what to do. "She can't hurt me here! I can hold her off with my powers, but-"

Maerd swung her arm leaving a long slash across Ethan's chest. He suddenly vanished in a flash of blue light

"NOW!" screamed Benny as he darted for the creature. He placed his right hand against her, and as he did the ring began to glow. Meard reared back in pain only to run into Eric, whose eyes were glowing purple. She screamed out loud and knocked the boy to the side. She turned to Benny and swung. He felt a burning sensation in his arm and stumbled backwards with blood pouring from his new wound.

_"You're with child? How... unique. Forget your simple soul, I want the one of the unborn life within you. Imagine the limitless power a child born between a Spellmaster and Seer could have. Imagine what I could. The mind races at races at such thoughts."_

Time suddenly slowed. He watched as Maerd's raised her arm high, and from the corner of his eye caught Eric's mischievous smile. He closed his eyes as he did a sickening wet sound filled the air. Unable to stop himself Benny looked up.

Eric was standing in front of him with Maerd's arm running through his chest. The sight alone was more than Benny could handle, he felt his breath catch in his throat and stifled a cry. All around them cracks began to appear tearing the world apart. As the spread the Wraith screamed in pain. She pulled her arm free and floated away from them screaming. Benny slowly crawled over to his son and felt tears well up in his eyes. The brown hair and green eyes, why hadn't he seen it before? He wasn't Erica's son anymore, no... he was Ethan's.

"Don't cry," whispered Eric as the cracks began to expand. "I told you... I had... a plan."

"But if you die then..." He placed a hand on his stomach. "No..."

"He's fine... I don't belong here. I'm found... I live... I die... This was the only way... to wake you... She's gonna try... to get Ethan... Follow her... protect him... And one... last thing..." He leaned forward and whispered into his ear. Benny nodded.

"I promise."

"Good... be... careful... Dad..." He closed his eyes. "She's... coming... The Fortune Teller..." His head fell to the side and Benny felt anger well up within him. He stood up and looked at Maerd, who in turned glared back at him. A large black hole appeared in the floor between them.

_"There are more ways than one to acquire the soul I so desire. I will have that power, even if I must use another to get to it."_

She smiled and flew into the strange abyss. Benny looked at gash across his arm and then at Eric's body, time was of the essence. He dove into the darkness and far ahead caught sight of the ghostly creature. There was something oddly comforting about the shadows, and then all at once it dawned on him. They were heading into Ethan' mind.

"Don't worry E," said Benny as ran as fast as he could. "I'm coming."

* * *

Benny moaned, and turned his head. As he did another drop of blood fell from his right arm into the small pool forming underneath him.


	10. Emotion Commotion Part III

A/N: Here we are, the final chapter, and the ending to 'Feeling Something New'. I know there are a lot of things in this chapter that may never be addressed but I put them in there for a reason, and I hope you don't hate me for it. I actually had a really hard time writing 'Emotion Commotion Part III' and some of the things it addresses. So my co-author Takarifan101 actually did most of the work for this one (he actually did all of the work while I outlined it), so here he is with some final words before we get started.

Hey, Takarifan101 here. First off I just want to say I'm sorry for ending this story as early as I am. It's not that I don't like it, I just don't have the time to put as much effort into 'Feeling Something New' as it deserves. I'd rather have it end early then end up in the bottomless pits of the MBSAV fics without a resolution or a single update. I know a lot of you might not agree with that, but I think this is for the best.

That's not to say the story isn't ever going to be truly completed. I know I feel like I'm teasing you but in the far distant future, I plan on coming back and then together with AnotherSideTheOtherStory we'll finish this. If you have any questions or want to see the outline we made for the next 10 chapters please PM either her or me and we'd happy to answer any questions you may have.

Thank you to those who reviewed/favorited/followed/read our story. It's been a journey for me as this was my first Benny/Ethan fic and will most likely be my last (nothing against the pairing just not my cup of tea). I'm glad you enjoyed it so much, and without further ado I present to you the final chapter. Enjoy.

* * *

Feeling Something New

By AnotherSideTheOtherStory

Chapter 10: Emotion Commotion Part III

Ethan looked up at the black board and sighed when Maerd began to write out a long and complicated recipe. He turned over to his cooking partner and smiled as he thought of all the history between them. The one person he couldn't live without, the one person he would do anything to protect, but more than that, they had grown from kids into adults together, completed one another in ways no one else could understand. And on top of all that, it was this person who was responsible for starting their little family, and for bringing forth not only his true feelings, but there's as well.

Ethan unable to contain his emotions anymore reached over and took their hand in his. He placed a quick kiss on their cheek and whispered: "I love you Sarah."

Sarah turned to look at him with a small blush, and quickly returned the kiss. In the distance there were several flashes of light, and almost every student turned to watch the two falling stars soaring down towards the school. Ethan oblivious to it all held Sarah's hand tight unaware of the two equally powerful forces that had come crashing into his so called perfect world.

* * *

Benny stood defiantly in front of Maerd and watched as she floated up and down her appearance even more haggard than it had been minutes ago. The corner of her rotted and molded lips turned up in a smile, and he shuddered at the sight. That thing had moments ago been floating around his own Dreamscape trying to consume his soul, and worse than that posses his unborn son.

"Do you really think I'm going to let you take over E's mind?" asked Benny as he circled around her, never once breaking eye contact. "I'm going to protect him no matter I have to do."

"_Dream wraiths are born from the unrealized emotions that reside within the mind. We consume souls that cannot accept what are and what they want. Yours has been especially tantalizing, filled with such doubts, and insecurities. A buffet to last me a lifetime, and perhaps even more."_

"Then why do you want Ethan and my son?"

"_I want a body that I can thrive in and with the powers you both have I will be able to flourish unlike any other before... Except perhaps for **her**_... _You humans dream, and yet you refuse to reach out for the ideals you strive for. You have no idea what your capable of, how easily you can reach for these goals if you only fought a little. Yet it's that very process that gives me life. I want an existence where I can dream, where I can be free of this endless loop. And I will have it! The Dreamscape is my domain, and here you will play by my rules."_

"Except this is Ethan's dream," said Benny confidently as he approached her. "We're playing by his rules, and I know my friend better than anyone else. It's ends here Maerd, because I'm going to wake him up, and then I'm going make sure we never have to deal with you again."

"_It matters not if you know your friend, what matters is how well you know yourself. This is his perfect world; you may not like what you see. After all even your little crush has his own repressed emotions and feelings, though his is nowhere near as delicious as yours Benny."_

"It doesn't matter what you say because once I tell him the truth he'll be safe."

"_Very well then, I will not interfere. I'll watch as both your own insecurities and Ethan's mind tears you apart. The irony is almost palpable, and remember you're living on borrowed time."_

She vanished into a flash of purple light leaving Benny outside in the strange red glow of Ethan's dream world. He looked down at his bleeding arm, and then around the open field. If this was anything like his own Dreamscape then it didn't matter what entrance he used to get into the school, it was going to mixed up. One giant labyrinth, and at the center: Ethan. He ran for the door closest to him and was surprised to find it actually connected to the main hallway.

"Well this makes sense," whispered Benny sarcastically as he peered around at the lockers and various detail-less shadow like students. Pink posters of Sarah plastered the walls, each one with her in a different pose. Sarah smiling, Sarah laughing, Sarah blowing a kiss, it was nauseating. He felt his heat sink a little, he knew Ethan cared for her, but the fact she basically covered the entirety of his dream world? He shook his head determined to continue on. "It doesn't matter I need to tell Ethan the truth."

The Sarahs suddenly turned to him. "Tell Ethan the truth? He knows about the baby, he just doesn't care."

All at once they began to talk. "He has me to comfort him." "I can give him a normal family." "Who needs you when he has us?"

"You're not real, you're Maerd's illusions trying to stop me. If Sarah knew the truth, the real truth she'd never say those things."

"We know the truth though!" "Ethan told us not to worry about the baby." "He said you thinking about getting rid of it like the parasite it is."

"E would never say that," said Benny as he walked past them with a huge grin. "You must be running out of tricks if you're stooping to something so low to try and actually stop me."

The shadow students suddenly turned to face him, each and every one of them now in the likeness of the brunette vampire. In unison they began to sing:

"Rock a by baby in the treetop, when the wind blows the cradle rock." They all charged. "When the bow breaks the cradle will fall." Benny dodged several punches and made a dash for the nearest classroom. "And down will come Benny, baby and all."

He slammed the door and felt the Sarahs crashed against it. Through the small window he watched as their faces distorted become more beast like only to vanish as the darkness eventually overtook them. He placed a hand on his small bump and slid to the group feeling both exhausted and dizzy. He looked at blood dripping from his arm and struggled to catch his breath, time was running out and not just for him but for all of them, Ethan and the baby included.

"_The further you get into your friend's Dreamscape, the stronger your own insecurities will become."_

Benny looked up to get a better view of the room and wasn't the least bit surprised to find himself sitting on the floor of E's kitchen. He struggled to stand up and closed his eyes as he waited for the light-headedness to pass. When he opened them again faint projections of Ethan and Sarah were sitting at the table talking. It took him a moment to realize he wasn't looking at a dream, he was looking at one of Ethan's memories.

"_He was talking about adoption," _whispered Ethan as he kept his gaze cast downwards_. "I'm his best friend, and I'm supposed to help him, but adoption? I… should I say something? Can I say something?"_

"_You've always been honest with him,"_ said Sarah as she placed her hand on his. _"If you can't be honest with him now then when can you? Benny's going to need all the emotional support he can get, and Ethan you're gonna be the one he goes to. Erica might be the mom, but you're his friend, and right now he needs that honesty more than anything else."_

There was a flash of purple light and both Ethan and Sarah turned to face him their eyes glowing dark red. Ethan sneered revealing a pair of sharp white fangs. He stood up and slowly began to approach him.

"Stupid Spellmaster, knocking yourself up, ruining your life, ruining my life, not to mention everyone else's. I hope the baby dies when it's born, can you imagine holding an infant with no life in its body? It'll be punishment for you for lying to everyone, for lying to yourself."

Benny felt tears burn at the corner of his eyes. It wasn't real, but the fears, the fears were. Sarah suddenly appeared at his side with the same smile.

"Can you imagine a child sized coffin?" whispered the vampire her fangs inches away from his neck. "They come in all kinds of happy little colors, like fire truck red or sky blue. Something to distract the parents from the cold harsh reality that they failed their babies let them die. Kind of like you Benny, the way you starved yourself, or tried to 'protect' others."

For the first time since entering E's Dreamscape Benny felt the fight go out of him. It was true in the beginning he wasn't sure what he wanted to do with his son, he had been afraid, and alone. But not anymore, he had people who cared about him, people who wanted to help him, who wanted more than anything for him to tell Ethan the truth. Those earlier indecisions and fears were gone… right?

"They're never gone," said Ethan as he gave him a pout. "It would've been so much easier if you had just aborted, and put our son out of his misery. Instead you had to drag it on, lying to yourself the entire way. Now thanks to you," Ethan placed a hand on his stomach. "I'm the one who has to do it."

The moment Benny felt the hand touch his stomach he recalled what Eric had whispered to him:

"_The closer you get to Ethan… the more the truth will hurt… deep down… on some level he already knows. Promise me… you'll tell him what matters… the truth… that scares you the most."_

Benny grabbed the fake Ethan's hand and sidestepped the fake Sarah before she could bite him. He brought up the ring and punched the illusion with as much strength as he could muster. The vampire howled in pain and before Ethan could react, Benny kneed him in the crotch and placed the ring against his forehead. They both vanished leaving no traces of their malice, of his fears behind.

Benny fell against the wall and after a moment found himself holding his stomach and crying. For the first time since this madness had started he was afraid.

* * *

"_Hey! You're-" _Static. Ethan wasn't sure how or why, but those words and the memory with them had been replaced with nothing but the sound of static. He placed a hand on his head, and looked around. It was his regular Home Ec class, but something wasn't right, someone was missing.

"_Get out of here! You have to protect the baby!" _Ethan screamed in pain as he clutched his head. There was something there, there had to be but… who was it? The students, and Sarah remained oblivious as the continued to cook whatever dish they had been assigned. The only who actually seemed to see him, to acknowledge his existence was Ms. Maerd.

"Ethan what's the matter?" asked Sarah in a monotone voice as she turned to him. "Are you ok? We can cancel our Star Wars date if you're not feeling well."

"What did you say?"

"I said we can cancel watching Star Wars tonight-"

"You're not Sarah!" screamed Ethan as he took a step away from her. "Sarah always says Stars Wars, it's the most annoying ever but she always does it! This is... this isn't real!" All at once the students looked at him. "None of this is real! Sarah's not even in my class! Benny is!"

She grabbed him by the wrist. "Excellent deduction boy."

Ethan smiled and as he did his eyes began to glow white. The vampire vanished before him, and before Maerd could do anything he pointed a finger at her. Chains exploded from the ground and bound themselves tightly around her wrist and arms.

"I'm a Seer," said Ethan his eyes still glowing. "My mind is my strongest weapon."

_"You are as foolish as your friend is if you think I'm bested that easily."_

His shadow emerged from the ground and Ethan felt a strange weight in his chest. He looked over his shoulder and found another Maerd had run her arm through him.

_"Do not fear, I'm not killing you. Instead I'm going flood your mind and powers with pure darkness, and then they will become my greatest weapon in destroying your friend."_

"Benny's… here?" asked Ethan as he struggled to breath through the strange weight. "He'll… stop you."

"_Poor Benny isn't going to just be fighting his own insecurities anymore, he's going to be fighting against your visions as well."_

Ethan screamed out in pain as darkness began to surge into his chest forcing his powers to activate. Behind him Maerd began to laugh.

* * *

Benny was wandering through Morgan's endless staircase when the world rippled around him forcing the edges out of focus. It took him a moment to place the feeling then all at once it clicked, this was how E described his visions. As if in response he heard his friend cry out in pain.

"I'm coming E," whispered Benny as he forced himself to continue up the staircase. The moment he touched down on the landing he materialized in the Morgan's living room. He let out a frustrated curse and stopped when he caught sight of E's parents sitting on the sofa comforting one another.

"_It's just so… wrong_," whispered Samantha as she dabbed at her eyes with a tissue. _"It's our fault, that's why we're being punished."_

"_It's not your fault, or Ethan's… or…"_ There was a flash of purple light and Ross turned to face him. "It's his. He's the one who perverted himself with magic. If he hadn't done that then our family would be perfect. He thinks he has a right to love our son, but it's sick, and wrong and disgusting. You don't deserve to be near him to ruin his chance to have a normal life."

Both Ross and Samantha began to change as the world flickered out of existence. They were no longer the kind caring parents Benny had known growing up, instead they looked like large misshapen wolves with vampire fangs. Benny backed into a tree and looked around, any hints of the Morgan household were gone, and it's place were large trees, and overgrown bushes.

"You're no better than us," whispered a third wolf as it joined them. It towered over the other to, with its grey skin and ragged brown almost white hair. "You just have the outward appearance of a human, but inside your as rotted as we look."

"I don't know what Maerd did," said Benny as they closed in around him, he held up the ring. "But you're not real, your just Ethan's dreams made to look like my insecurities."

"You don't understand," said the biggest as it got closer. "This isn't a dream anymore, this is the future, you've been thrown into Ethan's visions. Your little magic ring won't protect you here."

It jumped and Benny rolled forward. He heard it crash against the tree and sprinted as fast as he could, he had no idea where he was, or where he was going but he needed to escape. The forest gave way to a clearing and resting in the center was a large house with two chicken like feet resting at its sides. He looked over his shoulder and turned to run when the front door suddenly opened. A calm sweet voice began to speak:

_"Maerd fears you because she knows you're the only one capable of waking Ethan up. His visions are just that- visions of the future. They cannot harm you because they haven't happened yet."_

"Who are you?" asked Benny as he the door to the house began to close. "Are you another one of Ethan's visions?"

_"I am the Grandmother._" The house vanished. _"We will meet again young Weir."_

* * *

Rory walked alongside both Sarah and Erica listening babble about Benny's pregnancy. He felt slightly jealous, he wanted girls talking about him all the time too, not to mention Benny actually _got_ to be pregnant and was going to have a tiny little baby soon. He smiled as he imagined the small infant, and then he recalled the promise Ethan had made to him. Once that baby was born he was going to make sure he was there everyday of its life, he was totally going to be the cool uncle.

Rory frowned, he wanted his own son, maybe he could... Before he could put any more thought into the idea he felt the strangest twinge in the back of his mind. He sniffed the air and stopped.

"Isn't it enough I'm actually walking with you?" asked Erica as she crossed her arms. "Hello Earth to Rory?"

"What's the matter?" asked Sarah as she sniffed the air. "I'm not smelling anything."

"My Benny senses are tingling," whispered Rory as he looked around unable to find the source of the smell. "I can smell his blood... and a lot of it."

* * *

When Benny emerged from the forest he was standing in front of Ms. Maerd's room. He clenched his fists, and fighting off the exhaustion was that threatening to overtake him threw open the door. Ethan stood in front of him with his eyes glossed over and unfocused.

"E!" screamed Benny as he stumbled in and pulled his friend into a tight hug. "I was so worried about you, are you ok?"

"I'm fine Sarah," said Ethan his voice monotone. "Why wouldn't I be?"

_"He doesn't know you, he doesn't care about you. Why can't you just give in. Look around you at the posters of Sarah, she's the ones he truly wants. Why can't you accept the fact you have no part in his life?"_

Benny took a step back and turned around looking for Maerd, the monster was nowhere to be seen. He locked eyes with the various posters of Sarah, they were all looking at him with the same smug smile. "Ethan it's me, it's Benny, your best friend."

"What are you talking about? I don't know a Benny..." He shook his head. "I... don't..."

_"Give up already."_

"Yes you do E! You know me! We grew up together, we're next door neighbors, we're brothers... you're..." He took in a deep breath. He needed to say, this was it, this was the only chance he was going to get. He thought about his son, about all the lies he had told over the last four months, about the way he had to hide everything he wanted to be proud of. He took in a deep breath and looked Ethan directly in the eyes. He took his friend's hands and placed them against his small bump.

"You're the parent E," whispered Benny as he put his hands on top of Ethan's. "You're gonna be a dad."

"It's… mine?" asked Ethan as he looked over at Benny with a confused expression. "The baby is mine?"

There was a spark light in his friends eyes, all around the strange posters began to flicker. Ethan's shadow extended and from within the depths of its darkness Maerd appeared. She let out a scream of pain and floated backwards with a hand against her chest. Cracks began to spread across the room.

_"You should've been consumed by the visions, he should've been consumed by his love for her! It's not possible, how did you break my control? HOW?"_

Benny turned to look at her with the same smile on his face as before. He continued to hold Ethan's hands against his stomach. "You don't get it do you?"

_"What are you talking about? I was born in this world, I control it! I understand it more than you ever will!"_

"Ethan cares about as much as he care about Sarah." All at once the posters began to flicker in between Benny and Sarah. "When I first arrived here you tried to use my own insecurities against me by manipulating Ethan's Dreamscape."

"B-Benny?" asked Ethan as he looked at his friend and then down at his hands. He turned red and quickly pulled them way. "S-sorry I didn't mean to touch your bump. W-we need to get out of here! NOW!"

Maerd charged at them, and Benny pulled Ethan out of the way. He held up his hand and the ring began to glow. She let out a scream of pain and floated backwards before crashing against the floor. The cracks began to expand consuming desks.

"You need to wake me up," said Ethan as he looked around for some sort of escape. "Ok I have an-YOUR ARM!"

"It's fine," said Benny feeling light-headed. He grabbed onto Ethan for support. "Don't you remember what I just told you? Isn't that enough to-"

Maerd grabbed his leg and dragged him along the ground before holding him against the board by his neck. Ethan ran forward and was knocked backwards against the ground. The Wraith rose into the air its eyes glowing dark red.

"I AM GOING TO KILL YOU BOTH! NO MORE GAMES! NO MORE MERCY!"

Human like shadows emerged from the ground all around them with glowing red eyes and bright yellow teeth. Benny struggled against her grip and felt his body going numb. He looked over at Ethan, he had told him the truth wasn't it enough to break the Dreamscape? The hand tighten around his neck and heard Eric's words once more.

_"Promise me… you'll tell him what matters… the truth… that scares you the most."_

"_I did_," thought Benny as he tried to free himself. "_I told him the truth that hurt me the most, it was always the baby._" But it wasn't enough, the Dreamscape had only splintered. Ethan must've assumed or on some level known that, then what? What truth? What truth was Eric walking about? Then all at once it dawned on him. It wasn't the baby, though the baby had been part of it, it was never about the heritage of his son. The shadows closed in around E, and using the last of his strength Benny yelled out as loud as he could.

"ETHAN I LOVE YOU!" Maerd screamed out in pain and let go of him. The shadows vanished and E was at his side in an instant with an unreadable look on his face."I've been in love with you ever since we watched the moon rise together."

"What?"

"I've had a crush on you this entire time and I've been afraid of telling you because I didn't know how you'd react."

Ethan looked at him and then at the world collapsing around them. He leaned forward to whisper something when the room suddenly vanished into the ever-expanding cracks. The last thing either of them heard was Maerd's calm voice.

_"She is coming... the Midwife..._."

* * *

Maerd looked around the empty white space of the Dreamscape and knew without a doubt she had lost. She struggled to hang onto the failing reality and watched as a familiar figure approached her.

_"You... did... this..._" managed Maerd as she looked at the woman. _"You... lied..."_

"I did no such thing," whispered the woman as she bent down. "I told you you could have a feast the likes of which you've never seen, under the condition you stayed away from what I wanted. You broke my rule, so I broke you."

Maerd said nothing and watched as the woman stood up and walked away. As she faded away into nothingness the woman smiled. "You should've know better than to cross me."

* * *

Ethan sat up in his chair and looked around the classroom for Benny. He watched as the other students stirred and began to rise but saw no sign of his friend. The door exploded open, and Rory, Erica, and Sarah entered with their fangs bared and ready to go. The students were too dazed to register what happened and a moment later Rory flashed to his side. Ethan caught sight of the puddle of blood on the floor, thought of Benny's wound and paled.

"Are you ok?" asked Sarah as she hugged him and kissed him on the cheek. "Rory smelled Benny's blood and some kind of magic was blocking out the class-"

"Where's Benny?" asked Ethan as he looked around. "Did any of you see him?"

They shook their heads and Ethan rushed passed them without explaining. Once outside he realized the sun was setting, how long had they been trapped in the Dreamscape? Did Benny even escape? Or was he still trapped slowly bleeding out? He arrived the at Weir house and banged on the door until Evelyn appeared looking rather annoyed.

"What can I-"

"Was Benny here?" demanded Ethan as he looked pleadingly at her. "I mean was he here in the past few minutes?"

"Yes, he came in, went to his room and then left again. I thought he was with you, did something happen?"

Ethan left without an explanation. He stopped as he neared the end of the street and then closed his eyes. Where would Benny have gone? All at once the answer came to him. He ran as fast as he could, if there was one place he was sure to find his friend it was there. A few minutes later Ethan found himself hiking to the top of Heartford Hill. He smiled when he caught sight of his friend sitting at the top watching as the sun slowly set.

"Hey," whispered Ethan as he took a seat next to Benny. "You were gone when I woke up and I freaked out."

"Sorry," answered Benny as he gave him a lopsided smile and held up his bandaged arm. "I needed to get this fixed and I just needed some time to think."

A comfortable silence fell over the two boys, and it wasn't until the sun was vanishing behind the hills that Ethan finally asked:

"Is it true? Everything that you said in the Dreamscape?"

"Yeah," said Benny without looking at him. "The baby was yours... I knew since the beginning it was yours. You touched me first when I handed you the journal, I just didn't know how to tell you."

"I told you at the beginning if the baby was mine I wouldn't have a problem with it."

"You were so happy with Sarah... I didn't want to ruin that and..." He finally turned to face him. "I was afraid I was going to lose you, I didn't know... Normal friends don't go through things like this..."

"Then the other stuff you said..."

"Yeah..." Benny pulled his knees to his chest and stared up at the rapidly changing sky. "All true."

Ethan scooted closer to him, their shoulders touched and said: "I saw your bump earlier, it's... kind of cute on you..."

Benny turned red. "Stop it E, I know your trying to make me feel better but you're dating Sarah."

"I care a lot about Sarah, and I care a lot about you. You both mean so much to me, and now... Benny I'm not sure about that anymore, so many things have changed."

"The only thing that's changed," mumbled Benny as he crossed his legs and touched his stomach. "Is that I told you you're gonna be a dad, but apparently you already knew that."

"There's more to it than just than," whispered Ethan as he reached out to touch Benny's stomach and stopped. "C-can I?"

Benny shrugged and leaned back on his arms. Ethan touched Benny's stomach and felt the tiny bump for the first time. He let out a laugh, looked over at Benny and began to rub it. "Hey little guy, it's me... your dad..." He looked up at his friend. "This is our son... we're gonna be parents."

"Yeah," whispered Benny as he placed his hand's on top of Ethan's. "We're gonna be parents."

Benny found himself staring deep into Ethan's eyes and his dream from months ago suddenly flashed forward. The brunette turned to him and placed his forehead against Benny's. "I'm gonna be there for you, for both of you."

Benny said nothing and felt Ethan's lips press against his. All at once his worries were gone, the strange knot in his stomach gone, everything that had plagued him melted away in the glowing orange right. They explored each other lips for a moment and when Ethan pulled away he whispered: "I promise."


End file.
